Probing quantum solvation with infrared spectroscopy:: infrared activity induced in solid parahydrogen by N2 and Ar dopants

We present the first high-resolution study of the infrared (IR) absorption spectra of solid parahydrogen matrices containing low concentrations of N-2 or Ar impurities, The spectra reveal dopant-induced absorption features that acquire IR activity through short-range isotropic vibrational transition dipole moments arising from dopant-H-2 intermolecular interactions. These dopant-induced features provide new insights into the perturbation of the vibron bands of the H-2 matrix by chemical impurities, and thus into the physics of solvation in a quantum solid. (C) 2002 Published by Elsevier Science B.V.