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Observation of the Isotope Effect in Sub-Kelvin Reactions
Etay Lavert-Ofir*[1] , Yuval Shagam*[1] , Alon B. Henson[1] , Sasha Gersten[1] , Jacek Klos[2] , Piotr Zuchowski[3] , Julia Narevicius[1] , Edvardas Narevicius[1]
[1] Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, 76100
[2] University of Maryland, MD, USA
[3] Nicolaus Copernicus University, Poland
In the cold regime, below 1 kelvin, reaction dynamics are dominated by quantum effects. Collisional complexes form when particles tunnel through centrifugal potential barriers leading to a phenomenon known as the scattering resonance or shape resonance. Our latest scattering results of metastable helium with H2, HD, and D2 show strong energy dependent variations in the reaction rates of the different isotopologues at sub-kelvin temperatures. I will demonstrate how our experimental results guide ab initio theory using the extraordinary sensitivity of resonance state positions toward small variations in the potential energy surfaces, removing the uncertainty in the calculations.