Three-body dissociation dynamics of the low-lying Rydberg states of H3 and D3

The dynamics of the three-body dissociative charge exchange of fast (12 keV) H+3 and D+3 with Cs have been studied using multiparticle translational spectroscopy. The observed partitioning of product momenta was found to be state-specific and yields insights into the nuclear motion during dissociation for the three lowest-lying 2s 2A'1, 2p 2A'2, and 3p 2E' metastable Rydberg states of H3 and the 2s 2A'1 and 2p 2A'2 states for D3. These results provide direct empirical information on the nonadiabatic couplings that govern the three-body dissociation of the lowest-lying Rydberg states of H3 and D3.