Resonances in Inelastic Electron Scattering from H2

Resonance structure in the electron scattering from H2 has been observed in two inelastic channels corresponding to excitation to the first and second vibration levels of H2(X1Σg+). An overlapping of resonances due to at least two H2− states lying between 11 and 13 eV is apparent. The structure in the inelastic channels is compared to the observed resonance structure in the transmission channel. The resonances are found to affect the inelastic channels more strongly than the transmission channel. The excitation function for direct vibrational excitation to the v=1 level was measured near threshold and found to increase approximately linearly in this region.