No Arabic abstract
We make use of supersymmetric quantum mechanics (SUSY QM) to find three sets of conditions under which the problem of a planar quantum pendulum becomes analytically solvable. The analytic forms of the pendulums eigenfuntions make it possible to find analytic expressions for observables of interest, such as the expectation values of the angular momentum squared and of the orientation and alignment cosines as well as of the eigenenergy. Furthermore, we find that the topology of the intersections of the pendulums eigenenergy surfaces can be characterized by a single integer index whose values correspond to the sets of conditions under which the analytic solutions to the quantum pendulum problem exist.
We undertook a mutually complementary analytic and computational study of the full-fledged spherical (3D) quantum rotor subject to combined orienting and aligning interactions characterized, respectively, by dimensionless parameters $eta$ and $zeta$. By making use of supersymmetric quantum mechanics (SUSY QM), we found two sets of conditions under which the problem of a spherical quantum pendulum becomes analytically solvable. These conditions coincide with the loci $zeta=frac{eta^2}{4k^2}$ of the intersections of the eigenenergy surfaces spanned by the $eta$ and $zeta$ parameters. The integer topological index $k$ is independent of the eigenstate and thus of the projection quantum number $m$. These findings have repercussions for rotational spectra and dynamics of molecules subject to combined permanent and induced dipole interactions.
We show that combined permanent and induced electric dipole interactions of polar and polarizable molecules with collinear electric fields lead to a sui generis topology of the corresponding Stark energy surfaces and of other observables - such as alignment and orientation cosines - in the plane spanned by the permanent and induced dipole interaction parameters. We find that the loci of the intersections of the surfaces can be traced analytically and that the eigenstates as well as the number of their intersections can be characterized by a single integer index. The value of the index, distinctive for a particular ratio of the interaction parameters, brings out a close kinship with the eigenproperties obtained previously for a class of Stark states via the apparatus of supersymmetric quantum mechanics.
A strong inhomogeneous static electric field is used to spatially disperse a rotationally cold supersonic beam of 2,6-difluoroiodobenzene molecules according to their rotational quantum state. The molecules in the lowest lying rotational states are selected and used as targets for 3-dimensional alignment and orientation. The alignment is induced in the adiabatic regime with an elliptically polarized, intense laser pulse and the orientation is induced by the combined action of the laser pulse and a weak static electric field. We show that the degree of 3-dimensional alignment and orientation is strongly enhanced when rotationally state-selected molecules, rather than molecules in the original molecular beam, are used as targets.
A strong inhomogeneous static electric field is used to spatially disperse a supersonic beam of polar molecules, according to their quantum state. We show that the molecules residing in the lowest-lying rotational states can be selected and used as targets for further experiments. As an illustration, we demonstrate an unprecedented degree of laser-induced 1D alignment $(<cos^2theta_{2D}>=0.97)$ and strong orientation of state-selected iodobenzene molecules. This method should enable experiments on pure samples of polar molecules in their rotational ground state, offering new opportunities in molecular science.
The stationary nonempirical simulations of Na+(H2O)n clusters with n in a range of 28 to 51 carried out at the density functional level with a hybrid B3LYP functional and the Born-Oppenheimer molecular dynamics modeling of the size selected clusters reveal the interrelated structural and energetic peculiarities of sodium hydration structures. Surface, bulk, and transient configurations of the clusters are distinguished with the different location of the sodium nucleus (close to either the spatial center of the structure or one of its side faces) and its consistently changing coordination number (which typically equals five or six). The <rNaO> mean Na-O distances for the first-shell water molecules are found to depend both on the spatial character of the structure and the local coordination of sodium. The <rNaO> values are compared to different experimental estimates, and the virtual discrepancy of the latter is explained based on the results of the cluster simulations. Different coordination neighborhoods of sodium are predicted depending on its local fraction in the actual specimens.