Morse bifurcations of transition states in bimolecular reactions

The transition states and dividing surfaces used to find rate constants for bimolecular reactions are shown to undergo Morse bifurcations, in which they change diffeomorphism class, and to exist for a large range of energies, not just immediately above the critical energy for first connection between reactants and products. Specifically, we consider capture between two molecules and the associated transition states for the case of non-zero angular momentum and general attitudes. The capture between an atom and a diatom, and then a general molecule are presented, providing concrete examples of Morse bifurcations of transition states and dividing surfaces.