Laser induced chemical reactions and laser-collision processes

Theoretical investigations into the dynamics of atoms and molecules in strong radiation (laser) fields and under electron impact have been carried out. The studies were carried out using quantum mechanics and new approaches were developed for six major areas. First, a new and much more efficient method of solving the time independent quantum scattering equations was developed (VIVAS) and has been disseminated. Second, laser-collision processes were investigated and a negative result was determined. Only under very special circumstances and very strong laser fields can the field affect the course of a collision process (versus affecting the states of reactants before collisions). Third, methods for calculating multiphoton absorption by diatomic and polyatomic molecules were developed and applied. Fourth, methods of calculating the final states from single photon photodissociation of triatomic molecules were developed and applied. Analogous methods were developed and applied to electron-molecule collisions which result in either vibrational excitation or dissociative attachment. The first accurate calculations of dissociative-attachment of a triatomic molecule (CO) were made. Finally, the distributed Gaussian basis was developed as a general basis for the quantum calculations of vibrational states of polyatomic molecules.