Collisional effects on molecular spectra: laboratory experiments and models, consequences for applications

Gas phase molecular spectroscopy is a powerful tool for obtaining information on the geometry and internal structure of isolated molecules as well as on the interactions that they undergo. It enables the study of fundamental parameters and processes and is also used for the sounding of gas media through optical techniques. It has been facing always renewed challenges, due to the considerable improvement of experimental techniques and the increasing demand for accuracy and scope of remote sensing applications. In practice, the radiating molecule is usually not isolated but diluted in a mixture