HYBRIDIZATION OF ROTOR STATES IN PARALLEL ELECTRIC AND MAGNETIC-FIELDS

We demonstrate in a spectroscopic experiment the hybridization of rotor states within the X and A electronic states of ICl, induced by parallel magnetic and electric fields of up to 0.7 T and 50 kV /cm. For a polar paramagnetic electronic state, such as the A state, the electric and magnetic fields conjoin in producing hybridization for one half of the molecular ensemble while they counteract for the other half. In the latter case the electric and magnetic effects can be tuned to balance out exactly; the concomitant field-induced hyperfine splitting remains in place, however, despite the resulting free rotation of the molecule.