Orientation dependence in the dissociative scattering of hydrogen molecules from metal surfaces

We investigate the molecular orientation dependence of the dissociation pro bability of neutral molecular hydrogen scattered from metal surfaces. The p robability distributions are calculated in the cases when positive and nega tive hydrogen ions (ion pair) are formed and when two neutral hydrogen atom s are formed. On the basis of numerical results, it is found that a paralle l orientation preference of probability distributions shows a tendency to b e suppressed in the case when an ion pair is formed as compared with the ca se when two neutral hydrogen atoms are formed. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B. V. All rights reserved.