Measurements of Atomic and Molecular Parameters of Hydrogen and Nitrogen for Solar Physics

Experiments in progress at Appalachian State University’s Ion Trap Laboratory are providing atomic and molecular data for solar, stellar, planetary, and astrophysical plasmas: collision rates coefficients, radiative decay rates of metastable ions, and unimolecular dissociation rates of ionized molecules. Processes currently under study include: collision rates of protons with H2 and He, of atomic and molecular nitrogen ions with N2, radiative decay of metastable 2s2p S2 N, and the dissociation rate of doubly-ionized molecular nitrogen. The first results of these investigations are presented, and the radio-frequency ion trap apparatus and its many capabilities to provide data for solar physics and related fields are discussed.