Bulletin of the American Physical Society
52nd Annual Meeting of the APS Division of Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics
Volume 66, Number 6
Monday–Friday, May 31–June 4 2021; Virtual; Time Zone: Central Daylight Time, USA
Session H01: Molecular & Biomolecular Collisions and SpectroscopyInvited Live
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Sponsoring Units: GEC Chair: James Colgan, LANL |
Wednesday, June 2, 2021 8:00AM - 8:30AM Live |
H01.00001: Positrons and biomolecules - from gas phase to liquids Invited Speaker: James P Sullivan Positrons interactions with biomolecules have been the subject of much research in recent years (e.g., [1]). In addition to extending theoretical models to encompass complex molecular targets, the ultimate aim is to be able to provide an improved description of positron interactions inside living systems [2]. This is important to, for instance, improve the understanding of radiation damage in Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scans. Most of the theoretical calculations to date have been for interactions with single molecules, which already presents a complicated problem for accurate descriptions of low energy collisions, thanks to the many degrees of freedom of the problem. All of the experimental work has been with molecules in the gas phase, which provides a direct test of these theories, although measurements on molecules that exist as solids at room temperature has been quite limited. |
Wednesday, June 2, 2021 8:30AM - 9:00AM Live |
H01.00002: Coulomb explosion imaging of carbon monoxide dimers Invited Speaker: Amine CASSIMI Carbon monoxide dimers (CO)2 have been studied since the 90’s using photon spectroscopy. However, the interpretation of the measured rovibrational spectra has shown the possible contribution of two distinct isomers of the dimer with very little binding energy difference. Our goal was to try to determine their geometry using a Coulomb explosion technique. |
Wednesday, June 2, 2021 9:00AM - 9:30AM Live |
H01.00003: From Spectroscopy To Life Invited Speaker: Clara Sousa Silva At the edge of our present scientific frontier lies the question: "Can we identify the signs of life on an exoplanet?". Establishing whether a planet is habitable, or inhabited, relies both on the observation of an exoplanet atmosphere and, crucially, its subsequent interpretation. This interpretation requires knowledge of the spectral behaviour of every significant atmospheric molecule. However, though thousands of molecular candidates can contribute towards the spectrum of an atmosphere, data exist for only a few hundred gases. Among these, only a fraction have complete spectra (e.g. ammonia, water). This deep incompleteness in the knowledge of molecular spectra presents a pressing vulnerability in the atmospheric study of planets; there exists a strong possibility of mis-assignment, false positives, and false negatives in the detection of molecules. The work presented in this talk combines structural organic chemistry and quantum mechanics to obtain the necessary tools for the interpretation of astrophysical spectra and, ultimately, the detection of life on an exoplanet. Whether alien life will produce familiar gases (e.g., oxygen) or exotic biosignatures (e.g., phosphine), painting a confident picture of a potential biosphere will require a holistic interpretation of an atmosphere and its molecules. In this talk Clara will describe ongoing efforts to train the next generation of scientists to decipher exoplanet atmospheres, and ultimately to detect a biosphere through the identification of volatile molecules, in particular those that might be produced by non-Earth-like life. |
Wednesday, June 2, 2021 9:30AM - 10:00AM Live |
H01.00004: On the Classical Trajectory Monte-Carlo Method to study ion-atom/molecule collisions. Invited Speaker: Clara Illescas
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