State-to-state rotational transition rates of the HCO+ ion by collisions with helium

Abstract

The rates of rotational transitions for HCO+, the most abundant ion in interstellar space, induced by collision with helium are obtained for temperatures ranging from 10 to 80 K. The calculations are based on a new potential energy surface for the He-HCO+ interaction and on a scattering matrix whose accuracy was checked by pressure broadening and shift measurements. The rates decrease for increasing values of j and Δj, with a temperature trend depending on the energy involved in the transitions: if it is small, the rates are almost constant, while an increase with T is found for other cases. Comparison with previous and less accurate results shows an agreement within 50 per cent. Comparison between state-to-state and pressure broadening cross-sections allows us to discuss importance and influence of elastic and inelastic collisions. © 2009 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2009 RAS.