Rotationally selected product pair correlation: F+CD4 --> DF(nu')+CD3(nu2 = 0 and 2, N)

The product pair correlation of the title reaction was measured with rotational selection for both the vibrationally ground CD3(nu = 0) and umbrella-excited CD3(nu2 = 2) products. A striking linear relationship was found between the rotational energy of the selected CD3 product and the correlated kinetic energy release (or the average vibrational energy of the DF coproduct). Such a linearly correlated (or anticorrelated) dependence appears to be stronger for CD3(nu2 = 2,N) than for CD3(nu = 0,N). The mechanistic implication of the observation is that the rotational motion N of the CD3 product tends to lie antiparallel to the orbital angular momentum l' of the two departing products. The dependency on the K quantum number--the projection of N on the top axis--is, on the other hand, less significant yet noticeable.