A theory of unimolecular gas reactions in which the rate with which the energized reactant molecule breaks down is treated as a function of the energy ɛ that it contains. The theory assumes that the rate is proportional to the number of ways of distributing ɛ among the internal degrees of freedom of the reactant molecule, in such a manner that the critical energy ɛc is localized in one particular degree of freedom.
Source:
PAC, 1996, 68, 149. 'A glossary of terms used in chemical kinetics, including reaction dynamics (IUPAC Recommendations 1996)' on page 185 (https://doi.org/10.1351/pac199668010149)