Generation of CW cold CH3CN molecular beam by a bent electostatic quadrupole guiding: Monte-Carlo study

A new kind of continuous-wave (CW) cold molecular beam, methyl cyanide (CH₃CN) beam, is generated by a bent electrostatic quadrupole guiding. The Stark shift of rotational energy levels of CH₃CN molecule and its population distribution are calculated, and the dynamic processes of electrostatic guiding and energy filtering of CH₃CN molecules from a gas source with room temperature (300 K) are simulated by Monte Carlo Method. The study showed that the longitudinal and transversal temperatures of output cold CH3CN beam could be about ∼2 K and ∼ 420 mK, and the corresponding guiding efficiency was about 10⁻⁵ as the guiding voltage was 3 kV. Furthermore, the temperature of the guided molecules and its guiding efficiency can be controlled by adjusting the guiding voltages applied on electrodes.