  The collision-energy resolved rate coefficient for dissociative recombination
of HD+ ions in the vibrational ground state is measured using the photocathode
electron target at the heavy-ion storage ring TSR. Rydberg resonances
associated with ro-vibrational excitation of the HD+ core are scanned as a
function of the electron collision energy with an instrumental broadening below
1 meV in the low-energy limit. The measurement is compared to calculations
using multichannel quantum defect theory, accounting for rotational structure
and interactions and considering the six lowest rotational energy levels as
initial ionic states. Using thermal equilibrium level populations at 300 K to
approximate the experimental conditions, close correspondence between
calculated and measured structures is found up to the first vibrational
excitation threshold of the cations near 0.24 eV. Detailed assignments,
including naturally broadened and overlapping Rydberg resonances, are performed
for all structures up to 0.024 eV. Resonances from purely rotational excitation
of the ion core are found to have similar strengths as those involving
vibrational excitation. A dominant low-energy resonance is assigned to
contributions from excited rotational states only. The results indicate strong
modifications in the energy dependence of the dissociative recombination rate
coefficient through the rotational excitation of the parent ions, and underline
the need for studies with rotationally cold species to obtain results
reflecting low-temperature ionized media.
