Oscillatory differential cross sections for Li + He, Ne, H₂and D₂optical collisions

Abstract

We report measurements of differential cross sections for optical collisions of Li atoms with He and Ne atoms and H2 and D2 molecules. Oscillatory structures are observed in all cases. For the atomic targets, we find a very good agreement with theoretical results based on close-coupling scattering calculations and recent quantum chemical data, and we derive estimates for the accuracy of the calculated potentials. For the molecular targets, calculations using the rotational sudden approach yield a good agreement with the experiment.