Studies of electron-induced reaction dynamics in the gas phase Alexander Butler, Daria Turculet, David Heathcote, Patrick A. Robertson Department of Chemistry, University of Oxford, UK Electron-induced processes are ubiquitous in many areas of physical chemistry; for instance secondary electrons can initiate reactions occurring in interstellar media and the atmosphere 1 . We conduct crossed-beam experiments in which we intersect a molecular beam with a beam of electrons of well-defined kinetic energy. By velocity- mapping the cationic products are velocity-mapped, we can identify fragments and shed light on the fragmentation mechanism with velocity information. Electron ionisation is a ballistic process, so ions are formed in a range of electronic states up to the kinetic energy of the incident electrons 2 . Our new electron source is capable of producing a low-energy electron beam, enabling us to resolve the contributions of low-lying cationic states. The new electron source also allows us to explore much higher energies up to 1000 eV, revealing the dynamics of higher charge states of the parent cation. References 1. N. J. Mason, B. Nair, S. Jheeta, and E. Szymanska, “Electron induced chemistry: a new frontier in astrochemistry,” Faraday discussions 168, 235–247 (2014). 2. J. N. Bull, J.W. Lee, and C. Vallance, “Electron ionization dynamics of n 2 and o 2 molecules: Velocity-map imaging,” Physical Review A 91, 022704 (2015).
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