Publications by authors named "Sridhar A Lahankar"

The dynamics of O(P) + NO collisions were investigated at a collision energy of ⟨⟩ = 84.0 kcal mol with the use of a crossed molecular beams apparatus employing a rotatable mass spectrometer detector. This experiment was performed with beams of O atoms and isotopically labeled NO molecules to enable the products of reactive and inelastic scattering to be distinguished.

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Molar yields of the pyrolysis products of thermal protection systems (TPSs) are needed in order to improve high fidelity material response models. The volatile chemical species evolved during the pyrolysis of a TPS composite, phenolic impregnated carbon ablator (PICA), have been probed in situ by mass spectrometry in the temperature range 100 to 935 °C. The relative molar yields of the desorbing species as a function of temperature were derived by fitting the mass spectra, and the observed trends are interpreted in light of the results of earlier mechanistic studies on the pyrolysis of phenolic resins.

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The first quantum-state-resolved distributions over the full range of available product levels are reported for any isotopic variant of the elementary reaction of O((3)P) with molecular hydrogen. A laser-detonation source was used to produce a hyperthermal oxygen-atom beam, which allowed for sufficient collision energy to surmount the reaction barrier. This beam was crossed by a supersonic beam of D2.

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The dynamics of hyperthermal O((3)P) reactions with acetylene have been investigated with the use of crossed molecular beams techniques, employing both mass spectrometric and optical detection of products. With collision energies of 40-150 kcal mol(-1), O((3)P) + HCCH/DCCD → HCCO/DCCO + H/D may follow multiple pathways to form the ketenyl radical (HCCO or DCCO) in ground doublet states or in electronically excited quartet and doublet states. Theoretical calculations support the assignment of the various reaction pathways.

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Elementary three-atom systems provide stringent tests of the accuracy of ab initio theory. One such important reaction, O((3)P) + H2 → OH(X(2)Π) + H, has eluded detailed experimental study because of its high activation barrier. In this reaction, both the ground-state reactant atom and product diatomic molecule have open-shell character, which introduces the intriguing complication of non-Born-Oppenheimer effects in both the entrance and the exit channels.

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The H-atom abstraction reaction, O((3)P) + CH(4) → OH + CH(3), has been studied at a hyperthermal collision energy of 64 kcal mol(-1) by two crossed-molecular-beams techniques. The OH products were detected with a rotatable mass spectrometer employing electron-impact ionization, and the CH(3) products were detected with the combination of resonance-enhanced multiphoton ionization (REMPI) and time-sliced ion velocity-map imaging. The OH products are mainly formed through a stripping mechanism, in which the reagent O atom approaches the CH(4) molecule at large impact parameters and the OH product is scattered in the forward direction: roughly the same direction as the reagent O atoms.

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State-resolved photodissociation dynamics of formaldehyde-d(2), i.e., D(2)CO, at energies slightly above the deuterium atom elimination channel have been studied both experimentally and theoretically.

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Recently, a new mechanism of formaldehyde decomposition leading to molecular products CO and H(2) has been discovered, termed the "roaming atom" mechanism. Formaldehyde decomposition from the ground state via the roaming atom mechanism leads to rotationally cold CO and vibrationally hot H(2), whereas formaldehyde decomposition through the conventional molecular channel leads to rotationally hot CO and vibrationally cold H(2). This discovery has shown that it is possible to have multiple pathways for a reaction leading to the same products with dramatically different product state distributions.

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We demonstrate a hybrid Doppler-free/Doppler-sliced ion imaging approach that is well-suited for detection of H or D atoms. The method relies on 2 + 1 resonant ionization with identical, nearly counterpropagating beams that are coplanar but directed at a small angle relative to the detector face. This results in Doppler selection of the velocity component along the time of flight axis but Doppler-free detection in the plane perpendicular to this axis.

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We present a detailed experimental and theoretical investigation of formaldehyde photodissociation to H(2) and CO following excitation to the 2(1)4(1) and 2(1)4(3) transitions in S(1). The CO velocity distributions were obtained using dc slice imaging of single CO rotational states (v=0, j(CO)=5-45). These high-resolution measurements reveal the correlated internal state distribution in the H(2) cofragments.

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A detailed study of the photoinduced molecular elimination pathway of formaldehyde on the ground state surface was carried out using high-resolution dc slice ion imaging. Detailed correlated H(2) rovibrational and CO rotational product quantum state distributions were measured by imaging spectroscopically selected CO velocity distributions following photodissociation at energies from approximately 1800 to approximately 4100 cm(-1) above the barrier to molecular elimination. Excitation to the 2(1)4(1), 2(1)4(3), 2(2)4(1), 2(2)4(3), and 2(3)4(1) bands of H(2)CO are reported here.

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High resolution kinetic energy release spectra were obtained for C(+) and O(+) from CO multiphoton ionization followed by dissociation of CO(+). The excitation was through the CO (B (1)Sigma(+)) state via resonant two-photon excitation around 230 nm. A total of 5 and 6 photons are found to contribute to the production of carbon and oxygen cations.

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The third order nonlinear optical properties of a trimer branched chromophore system and its linear molecule analog are investigated. Two-photon absorption and degenerate four wave mixing measurements were carried out on both systems. An enhancement in the nonlinear optical effect is observed for the branched trimer molecule in comparison to the linear chromophore system.

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