COLD NEUTRON SCATTERING BY MOLECULAR LIQUIDS: III. METHANE

Abstract

It is shown that a relationship exists between cold neutron scattering by simple molecular liquids and the corresponding infrared and Raman spectra of these substances. In particular, for liquids in which statistical correlations between the rotational and translational motion are negligible, the contribution of the rotational motion to the cold neutron scattering cross sections can be obtained from the infrared and Raman rotation–vibrational line-shape functions, thereby enabling one to interpret the observed cross sections directly in terms of the translational motion of the molecules. Numerical calculations are carried out for liquid methane and compared with recent observed cross sections.