Prior statistical distributions for the collision of an atom with a diatom

摘要

The statistical theories of reaction rates play a major role in the formulation and use of the information theoretic approach in reaction dynamics. The statistical theory is used as the prior theory to which the actual rates should be compared. Since one can formulate many different statistical theories, one is faced with the problem of which to use in the information theoretic analysis. Four different theories are reviewed and analyzed for a collinear reaction. It is shown that of these the theory based on the assumption of equal rates for equal product flux in phase space leads to difficulties. Furthermore, a classical collinear calculation of a reaction on a potential surface with a deep well shows that the product state distribution of a reaction involving a long lived complex is well characterized by the statement of equal probability for equal product density in phase space. The implications of these findings on the information theoretic approach are discussed.