MOLECULAR VIBRATION DYNAMICS IN SCATTERING OF NO/AG

Vibrational excitation in NO/Ag scattering is discussed within the adiabatic approximation. The vibrational heating observed experimentally suggests energy transfer from translational to vibrational energy. Taking into account the observed change of NO stretch frequency on absorption, the observed magnitude and energy dependence of vibrational excitation can be described with reasonable parameters. Further investigations are needed to obtain unambiguous results concerning the relative importance of adiabatic and nonadiabatic effects in NO/Ag scattering.