Vibrational de-excitation of HF(v = 1) in HF + Ar: Importance of rotational transitions

The importance of rotational transitions in the vibrational de-excitation of HF(1 → 0) in HF + Ar collisions has been investigated by a semiclassical three-dimensional approach. Because of the inclusion of rotational transitions, this study gives vibrational relaxation times which are in reasonable agreement with experimental data and are very large compared to results of conventional vibration-to-translation energy transfer theories.