Production and loss of N 2 + , Ne+ and Ne 2 + during the decay period of plasmas produced in neon-nitrogen mixtures

Studies of the time dependencies of the number density of N ₂ ⁺ , Ne⁺ and Ne ₂ ⁺ ions have been made during the decay period of plasmas produced in neon containing various concentrations of nitrogen molecules. Reaction rate constants were obtained for N ₂ ⁺ +N₂+Ne→N ₄ ⁺ +Ne((1.2±0.2)×10^?29 cm⁶ sec^?1) and Ne⁺+N₂→N ₂ ⁺ + Ne ((2.9±0.3) × 10^?12 cm³ sec^?1). The ambipolar diffusion coefficient of N ₂ ⁺ in neon was found to beD _a p _o =350±20 cm² sec^?1 Torr.     

Symmetric charge-exchange reactions of N 2 + -ions investigated by laser-induced fluorescence

The symmetric charge-exchange reaction of fast N ₂ ⁺ ions (U _ion=800 eV) has been investigated by the method of laser-induced fluorescence. The distinction between the primary N ₂ ⁺ ion beam and the N ₂ ⁺ ions formed by charge-exchange was possible because of the different velocities of the two species which resulted in two spectral distributions separated by the Doppler-shift. Simulation techniques have been used in order to obtain rotation-vibration distributions for both the inelastically scattered fast ions and the charge-exchange products. The rotation distributions could be described by a temperature of 1,000 K for the inelastic and 300 K for the charge-exchange process. The latter process exhibits, however, a significant vibrational excitation which is attributed to the existence of a stable intermediate complex of N ₄ ⁺ . The preferred geometry for the intermediate collision complex is assumed to be non-planar.     

The production and loss ofN 2 + ions in the nitrogen afterglow

The time dependence of the number density of nitrogen ions was studied in the pressure range of about 0.1 to 1.7 Torr by means of mass spectrometric probing of decaying nitrogen plasmas. The analysis of theN ₂ ⁺ decay curves showed thatN ₂ ⁺ ions are produced in the afterglow by collisions between metastable nitrogen molecules. Energy level and radiative lifetime considerations indicate that one of the metastable molecules is in thea′ ¹∑ _u ^} state, while the other metastable molecule may be in the same state or in theA ³∑ _u ⁺ or³ Δ _u state. The surface catalytic efficiency for de-excitation of the metastable molecules involved upon striking the molybdenum covered plasma container walls was estimated to be smaller than 2×10^?3 at a pressure of 0.09 Torr. If both interacting metastable molecules are in the a′¹ bE _u ^} state the measurements result in a value of 1.3×10^?18 cm² for the cross section for destruction of this state by collisions with ground state nitrogen molecules.     

Stoßdissoziation von H 2 + - und D 2 + -Ionen

The angular and energy distribution of protons produced by collision-induced dissociations of H ₂ ⁺ ions with energies of 10 and 20 keV were measured in a parabola spectrograph. From these measurements the velocity distribution of the protons in the center of mass system of the H ₂ ⁺ ion can be calculated. This gives information about the type, the abundance, and the anisotropy of the processes involved. The most frequent transitions leading to dissociations are the excitation of the 2pσ_u state, the ionisation of the H ₂ ⁺ ion, the transition into the vibrational continuum, and the electron capture into the 1³ σ _u ⁺ state of the hydrogen. It is shown that the cross section for an electronic transition depends on the velocity of the ion, the distance of the nuclei in the ion, the angle between the internuclear axis and the direction of the primary ion beam, and the excitation energy of the target. The fraction of protons produced by vibrational excitation increases with increasing atomic number of the target. Concerning electronic transitions D ₂ ⁺ ions equal H ₂ ⁺ ions of the same velocity.     

Mass spectrometer studies of the ion composition in the pink afterglow

The time dependences of the ion number densities in the pink afterglow of nitrogen, as represented by the ion wall currents, have been measured. The ions were extracted through an orifice from a flow system and analysed by a quadrupol mass spectrometer. It has been found thatN ₂ ⁺ ions are dominating in the early afterglow. With the beginning of the ionization processN ₃ ⁺ and at pressure >6 TorrN ₄ ⁺ become the majority ions. The ratio of the number densities(N ₃ ⁺ )/(N ₂ ⁺ ) reaches a maximum during the increase of the ionization processes before the maximum is reached. This behaviour suggestsN ₃ ⁺ ions to be the primary ions created by the ionization processes. The time dependences of the ion number densities (N ₂ ⁺ ), (N ₃ ⁺ ) and(N ₄ ⁺ ) are found to vary similar, showing that the ions are strongly coupled by conversion processes. The conversion processes are discussed. In the maximum of ionization at a total pressure of 4.4 Torr the ratios of the number densities of the afterglow ions (N ₂ ⁺ )∶(N ₃ ⁺ )∶(N ₄ ⁺) are 1∶1.9∶0.64.     

Experimental study of the energy dependence of the reaction rate coefficients of the reaction CH 3 + with N2O and NH3

The kinetics of the reaction of CH ₃ ⁺ ions with N₂O and NH₃ has been investigated in He and Ar buffers using Selected Ion Flow Drift Tube technique (SIFDT). Both studied reactions proceed with nearly collisional rate at near thermal energies. The rate coefficient of the reaction of CH ₃ ⁺ with N₂O is decreasing more than one order of magnitude (from 1.2×10^?9cm³s^?1 up to 8×10^?11cm³s^?1) with reactant ion/reactant neutral average centre-of-mass kinetic energy (E _r) increasing from near thermal up to 2 eV. The dominant product of this reaction is the isomer HCO⁺ (≥94%) and the minor product is CH₃O⁺. The reaction of CH ₃ ⁺ with NH₃ has two binary channels with the dominant product ion CH₂NH ₂ ⁺ (>70%) and the minor product ion NH ₄ ⁺ (≈10%) and three body association channel with product CH₃NH ₃ ⁺ (≈20% at 0.32 Torr). The rate coefficient of this reaction is decreasing nearly by one order of magnitude with increasingE _r from near thermal up to 0.8eV, forE _r>0.8 eV the rate coefficient increases with increasingE _r. The experimental results are interpreted in terms of a simple model assuming the reactions to proceed via the formation of long-lived collision complexes.     

Production and loss of N2 + ions during the decay period of plasmas produced in helium-nitrogen mixtures

The time dependence of the number density of N₂ ⁺ ions during the decay period of plasmas produced in helium containing 0.05, 0.17 and 0.5 percent nitrogen was studied in the pressure range from about 0.3 to 7 Torr by means of mass spectrometer techniques. During the early part of the afterglow period the time dependence of N₂ ⁺ is controlled by ambipolar diffusion loss towards the plasma container walls. The product of the ambipolar diffusion coefficientD _a and the reduced pressurep ₀ wasD _ap₀=900± 50 cm² Torr/sec. The production of N₂ ⁺ by collisions between metastable nitrogen molecules determines the temporal behavior of the N₂ ⁺ density during the late afterglow for extremely pure discharge conditions. From the data it follows that the metastable molecules involved are de-excited by collisions with ground state helium atoms with a rate constant of 3.4 × 10^?15 cm³ sec^?1, while the radiative lifetime of these metastable molecules is at least 20 msec. The surface catalytic efficiency for de-excitation upon striking the molybdenum covered plasma container walls was estimated to be smaller than 10^?3. Energy and radiative lifetime requirements suggest that N₂ ⁺ is produced during the plasma decay period by the process N₂ (a′¹ Σ _u ^? )+N₂ (a′¹σ _u ^? →N₂ ⁺ (X²Σ _u ⁺ )+N₂(X)+e.     

Gyromagnetic ratios of 4+ and 6+ states in156Gd and158Gd

The followingg-factors have been derived from time integral measurements of γ-γ angular correlations in the static magnetic hyperfine field of magnetized gadolinium metal probes:¹⁵⁶Gd:g(4 ₁ ⁺ )=+0.310(19)g(6 ₁ ⁺ )=+0.25(21)g(4 ₃ ⁺ , 1511 keV)=+0.809(27)¹⁵⁸Gd:g(4 ₁ ⁺ )=+0.409(15). The 5.35d ¹⁵⁶Tb sources were produced by the reaction¹⁵⁶Gd(d, 2n)¹⁵⁶Tb in our cyclotron. A carrier-free 150y ¹⁵⁸Tb source was obtained from ISOLDE/CERN. In comparison with the precisely knowng-factors of the 2 ₁ ⁺ states,g(2 ₁ ^su+ ,¹⁵⁶Gd) =+0.386(4) andg(2 ₁ ⁺ ,¹⁵⁸Gd)=0.381(4), we observe a large reduction for the¹⁵⁶Gd 4 ₁ ⁺ state whereasg increases slightly for¹⁵⁸Gd. The half-life of the 4 ₁ ⁺ state of¹⁵⁸Gd was remeasured as¹⁵⁸Gd:T _1/2(4 ₁ ⁺ )=148(2) ps. A measurement of the rotation in the 4 ₃ ⁺ state of¹⁵⁶Gd in external magnetic fields of various strengths up toB _ext=9.5 T did not confirm the anomalous dependence of the magnetic hyperfine field in gadolinium metal on the external field, which has been reported by Persson et al. [29].     

Dissociative charge exchange in collisions of 10keV H 2 + ions on H2, He,and Ar targets

The velocity distributions of H-H fragment pairs arising from dissociative collisions of 10keV H ₂ ⁺ ions incident on H₂, He, and Ar were measured using a flight-time-difference method. The H ₂ ⁺ ions were produced in an electron impact ion source at two different electron energies, at 100eV and 18eV. The influence of the electron energy on the fragment velocity distributions is studied. Conclusions are drawn on the processes which lead to the formation of neutral fragment pairs. Electron capture into the repulsive b³ Σ _u ⁺ state of H₂ plays a dominant role.     

Investigating the dissociation energies of niobium and vanadium oxide clusters synthesized by ion sputtering

The mass distributions and fragmentation routes of Nb _n O _m ⁺ and V _n N _m ⁺ clusters sputtered from an metal surfaces with Xe⁺ ions under O₂ pressure of P = 4?5 × 10^?3 Pa in a bombardment chamber are studied by means of secondary ion mass spectrometry. The spectra of kinetic energy release distribution (KERD) are measured for the most probable routes of the fragmentation of Nb _n O _m ⁺ and V _n N _m ⁺ and clusters, on the basis of which the activation energies of the decomposition (dissociation) of Nb _n O _m ⁺ and V _n N _m ⁺ clusters are determined within the model of evaporative ensemble and the theory of monomolecular reactions. The results show the closeness of the numerical values of dissociation energies derived using both models.     

Magnetic moments of the 2 1 + states in102, 104Mo

Theg factors of the first excited 2⁺ levels in the neutron-rich nuclei¹⁰²Mo and¹⁰⁴Mo have been studied through the measurement of the perturbed angular correlations for theγ-γ cascades between the 0 ₂ ⁺ -2 ₁ ⁺ -0 ₁ ⁺ level sequences. The results of g=0.42±0.07 for¹⁰²Mo and ofg= _?0.11 ^+0.12 for¹⁰⁴Mo agree with the prediction of the vibrational-rotational model. In terms of IBA, with the assumption ofN _π=3 for the Mo isotopes which takes into consideration a two particle, two-hole excitation across the Z=40 subshell, the proton-bosong factor is deduced to beg _π=1.00±0.23. It is shown that this value provides evidence for subshell effects in¹⁰⁰Zr.     

The quadrupole momentQ 2+ of32S

The static quadrupole moment of the first excited 2⁺ state in³²S was determined by comparing, in coincidence with³²S ions backscattered from⁶⁰Ni, the gamma-ray yields of the 2 ₁ ⁺ →0 ₁ ⁺ transitions in both nuclei for bombarding energies around 70MeV. Depending on the sign of the interference term for transitions via the second excited 2⁺ state in³²S, the following two values were determined:Q ₂ ⁺ =(?18±4)e·fm² andQ ₂₊=(?15±4)e·fm².     

E2 andE3 transition strengths in some rare-earth nuclei

Coulomb excitation byα-particles of vibrational-like states in even-mass rare-earth nuclei is used to determine the reduced transition probabilitiesB(E2; 0 _gs ⁺ →2 _γ ⁺ ),B(E2; 0 _gs ⁺ →2 _β ⁺ ),B(E2; 2 _gs ⁺ →0 _β ⁺ ) andB(E2; 0 _gs ⁺ →3 _oct ^? ) in¹⁵⁰Nd,^{152, 154}Sm,^{154, 158}Gd,¹⁶⁴Dy and¹⁶⁶Er. TheB(Eλ; 0 _gs ⁺ →I=λ)-values range from 2.4 to 6.5 single-particle units for transitions to the 2 _γ ⁺ -states, 0.8 single-particle units for the 2 _β ⁺ -states and from 14.1 to 21.7 single-particle units for the 3^?-states.     

g-factor of the second 4+ state in24Mg

The transient field technique has been used to determine theg-factor of the 4 ₂ ⁺ state at 6.010MeV excitation in²⁴Mg. The deduced value ofg=+0.5(4) is consistent with collective model expectations. Further, the equality within experimental accuracies, of the g-factors of the 2 ₁ ⁺ , 2 ₂ ⁺ , 4 ₁ ⁺ and 4 ₂ ⁺ states agrees with theoretical predictions for thisT=0 self-conjugate nucleus, in contrast to the results for²⁰Ne.     

Remeasurement of the lifetime of the 4 1 + -state of156Gd and recalculation of itsg-factor

The half-life of the 4 ₁ ⁺ -state of¹⁵⁶Gd has been remeasured by the delayed coincidence technique. The excellent time resolution which can now be achieved by use of small BaF₂ detectors allows a more reliable determination than with previously applied methods. The resultT _1/2(¹⁵⁶Gd,4 ₁ ⁺ )=108(2) ps is smaller than previously published data, but it fits well into the systematics of theB(E2) values of the rotational transitions of this nucleus. A recalculation of the previously measuredg-factor of the same state givesg(¹⁵⁶Gd,4 ₁ ⁺ ) =0.327(19). This value is still smaller than theg-factor of the 2 ₁ ⁺ state, but the magnitude of the reduction can now easier be interpreted by nuclear structure calculations.     

Collision-induced dissociation of H 2 + ions into the fragmentations H+H(2p) and H++H(2p)

Using a photon-particle delayed coincidence method the energy distributions of H +H(2p) and H⁺+H(2p) fragment pairs have been measured arising from collisional dissociation of 10 keV H ₂ ⁺ ions incident on various target gases. H fragments in their 2p state are identified by the Lymanα radiation emitted. The distribution of H+H(2p) fragment pairs arising from dissociative charge exchange reveals a sharp increase below 0.2 eV in the center-of-mass frame of the H ₂ ⁺ ion. This is ascribed to predissociation of vibrational levels of higher H₂ Rydberg states close above then=2 dissociation limit by those H₂ Rydberg states which separate into H+H(2p) fragments. Only direct transitions into the continuum of theGK ¹ ∑ _g ⁺ state may compete. Some structure at 0.3–0.5 eV is attributed to the three statesI ¹ П _g,i ³ П _g, andh ³ bE _g ⁺ having potential barriers of this height. The distributions for H⁺+H(2p) have maxima at 3.4, 3.8, and 4.2 eV for a H₂, Ar, and He target, respectively, indicating that the 2pπ _u state as well as the 3dσ _g state ofH ₂ ⁺ is excited. The H+H(2p) process has a greater probability than the H⁺+H(2p) process for Ar and H₂ targets, though all electronic H₂ states under consideration are bound.     

Ionization and dissociative ionization of methane molecules

A technique for mass-spectrometric investigation of the yield of positive ions produced by direct and electron-impact dissociative ionization of methane molecules is described, and respective experimental data are presented. Doubly charged C ₂ ⁺ , CH ₃ ²⁺ , and CH ₄ ²⁺ ions, as well as singly charged D ₂ ⁺ , CD ₃ ⁺ , and CD ₄ ⁺ ions, are detected in the mass spectrum of a methane molecule at electron energy U _e = 90 eV for the first time. From ionization efficiency curves, the ionization energy of the parent molecule and the appearance energy of fragment ions are determined. The ionization energy of the CH₄ molecule is found to be 12.62 ± 0.20 eV. Electron-molecular reactions that may take place when a low-energy electron beam interacts with a methane molecule are analyzed. The ionization process and the formation of methane molecule fragments are studied.     

g-factor of the 4 1 + rotational state of160Dy

By use of Ge-detectors of the OSIRIS-collaboration [1] in connection with the 12 detector IPAC apparatus of our laboratory [2] a precise measurement of theg-factor of the 4 ₁ ⁺ rotational state of¹⁶⁰Dy was performed. The directional correlations of the threeγ-γ cascades, 1003-197 keV, 1103-197 keV and 1115-197 keV, which are weakly populated in the decay of 72.3 d¹⁶⁰Tb were observed simultaneously. The integral rotations in the static hyperfine field of DyTb at 4.2 K were measured. Theg-factorg(4 ₁ ⁺ )=+0.350(20) was derived. By comparison with the magnetic splitting of the 2 ₁ ⁺ rotational state observed in the same environment by a Mössbauer experiment [3] the ratio of the twog-factors was derived as g(4 ₁ ⁺ )/g(2 ₁ ⁺ )=+ 0.91(5). For the high energy lines we derived from the measured directional correlations the E1/M2 mixing parameters: δ(1003 keV)=+0.005(4); δ(1103 keV)=?0.020(22), and δ(1115 keV)=+0.010(4)     

New determination of the magnetic moment of the54Fe(2 1 + ) state at 1.408 MeV

Relative to the wellknowng-factor of⁵⁶Fe(2 ₁ ⁺ ) at 0.847 MeV, theg-factor of the⁵⁴Fe(2 ₁ ⁺ ) state at 1.408 MeV has been remeasured employing the technique of transient magnetic fields (TF) with the ions slowed down in ferromagnetic Gd host at initial velocities of 2.5 ν₀. Coulomb excitation on beams of^54,56Fe was accomplished with a Si target. The value obtained,g=1.05(17), is in excellent agreement with two previous results but disagrees with the value from a TF measurement where the ions passed through ferromagnetic Fe.     

SIMS of silicon bombarded with Sb m + cluster ions

The emission of Si _n ⁺ (n = 1–11) cluster ions and Si _n X _m ⁺ (X stands for B or Sb) polyatomic ions when bombarding a single silicon crystal with Sb _m ⁺ (m = 1–4) cluster ions with energies E ₀ = 3–12 keV is studied. Considerable nonadditive enhancement of the yield of Si _n ⁺ cluster ions and most polyatomic ions is observed when the number of atoms in the bombarding cluster ions is increased. The sensitivity enhancement factor for detecting boron impurities is as high as 50 when the cluster-SIMS-molecule technique is applied.