Elastic and inelastic collisions of $^2\Sigma$ molecules in a magnetic field

Abstract

We calculate the cross sections for elastic scattering and Zeeman relaxation in binary collisions of molecules in the ro-vibrational ground state of a $^2\Sigma$ electronic state and the Zeeman state with the electron spin projection $M_S=1/2$ on the magnetic field axis. This is the lowest-energy state of $^2\Sigma$ molecules confined in a magnetic trap. The results are averaged over calculations with multiple molecule - molecule interaction potentials, which yields the expectation intervals for the cross sections and the elastic-to-inelastic cross section ratios. We find that the elastic-to-inelastic cross section ratios under conditions corresponding to trapped molecular ensembles at $T \sim 10^{-3}$ K exceed 100 for the majority of $^2\Sigma$ molecules. The range of $^2\Sigma$ molecules expected to be collisionally unstable in magnetic traps at $T < 10^{-3}$ K is limited to molecules with the spin-rotation interaction constant $\gamma_{\rm SR} > 0.5$ cm$^{-1}$ and the rotational constant $B_e < 4$ cm$^{-1}$.