Resonant vibrational excitation of N₂ by low-energy electron impact

Cross sections for the excitation of vibrational levels up to nu =19 in N₂ have been calculated for electron impact energies in the range 1-7 eV. The R-matrix method is used to describe both the electronic and nuclear motions. Polarisation effects are included in a non-empirical manner and no adjustable parameters are included in any aspect of the model. The results are compared with recent experimental data and are found to be in excellent qualitative agreement.