Two-color visible/vacuum ultraviolet photoelectron imaging dynamics of Br2

An experimental two-color photoionization dynamics study of laser-excited Br2 molecules is presented, combining pulsed visible laser excitation and tunable vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) synchrotron radiation with photoelectron imaging. The X 1Sigmag + -B 3Pi0+u transition in Br2 is excited at 527 nm corresponding predominantly to excitation of the v' = 28 vibrational level in the B 3Pi0+u state. Tunable VUV undulator radiation in the energy range of 8.40-10.15 eV is subsequently used to ionize the excited molecules to the X 2Pi32,12 state of the ion, and the ionic ground state is probed by photoelectron imaging. Similar experiments are performed using single-photon synchrotron ionization in the photon energy range of 10.75-12.50 eV without any laser excitation. Photoelectron kinetic energy distributions are extracted from the photoelectron images. In the case of two-color photoionization using resonant excitation of the intermediate B 3Pi0+u state, a broad distribution of photoelectron kinetic energies is observed, and in some cases even a bimodal distribution, which depends on the VUV photon energy. In contrast, for single-photon ionization, a single nearly Gaussian-shaped distribution is observed, which shifts to higher energy with photon energy. Simulated spectra based on Franck-Condon factors for the transitions Br2(X 1Sigmag+, v" = 0)-Br2 +(X 2Pi12,32, v+) and Br2(B 3Pi0+u, v' = 28)-Br2 +(X 2Pi12,32, v+) are generated. Comparison of these calculated spectra with the measured images suggests that the differences in the kinetic energy distributions for the two ionization processes reflect the different extensions of the vibrational wave functions in the v" = 0 electronic ground state (X 1Sigmag+) versus the electronically and vibrationally excited state (B 3Pi0+u, v' = 28).     

Electronic and infrared absorption spectra of linear and cyclic C6+ in a neon matrix

Electronic and infrared absorption spectra of mass-selected C6+, generated by dissociative electron impact ionization of C6Cl6 and C6Br6, have been recorded in 6 K neon matrices. Linear and cyclic forms of C6+ have been observed. The 2Pig<--Chi2Piu electronic transition of linear C6+ has its origin band at 646 nm whereas for the (2) 2B2<--Chi2A1 system of the cyclic isomer it lies at 570 nm. An infrared active fundamental mode in the ground electronic state of C6+ is observed at 2092 and 1972 cm(-1) for the linear and cyclic isomer, respectively.     

Rovibrational photoionization dynamics of methyl and its isotopomers studied by high-resolution photoionization and photoelectron spectroscopy

High-resolution photoionization and pulsed-field-ionization zero-kinetic-energy photoelectron spectra of CH(3), CH(2)D, CHD(2), and CD(3) have been recorded in the vicinity of the first adiabatic ionization threshold following single-photon excitation from the ground neutral state using a narrow-bandwidth vacuum-ultraviolet laser. The radicals were produced from the precursor molecules methyl-bromide, methyl-iodide, dimethyl-thioether, acetone, and nitromethane by 193 nm excimer photolysis in a quartz capillary and were subsequently cooled to a rotational temperature T(rot) approximately equal to 30 K in a supersonic expansion. Nitromethane was identified as a particularly suitable photolytic precursor of methyl for studies by photoionization and threshold photoelectron spectroscopy. Thanks to the cold rotational temperature reached in the supersonic expansion, the rotational structure of the threshold ionization spectra could be resolved, and the photoionization dynamics investigated. Rydberg series converging on excited rotational levels of CH(3) (+) could be observed in the range of principal quantum number n=30-50, and both rotational autoionization and predissociation were identified as decay processes in the threshold region. The observed photoionization transitions can be understood in the realm of an orbital model for direct ionization but the intensity distributions can only be fully accounted for if the rotational channel interactions mediated by the quadrupole of the cation are considered. Improved values of the adiabatic ionization thresholds were derived for all isotopomers [CH(3): 79 356.2(15) cm(-1), CH(2)D: 79 338.8(15) cm(-1), CHD(2): 79 319.1(15) cm(-1), and CD(3): 79 296.4(15) cm(-1)].     

Absolute dipole oscillator strengths for photoabsorption,photoionization and ionic photofragmentation processes in HBr

Absolute dipole oscillator strengths (cross section) have been obtained for valence shell photoabsorption (7–100eV) and a variety of partial photoionization (11–40 eV) processes in gaseous HBr. Partial dipole oscillator strengths are reported for the formation of the X²Π, A²Σ⁺ and B²Σ electronic state of HBr⁺ as well as the respective photoelectron branching ratios. The photoelectron binding energy spectra show clear evidence of many-body effects in photoionization to the B²Σ state of HBr⁺ with the ionization oscillator strength divided over many bands as predicted by many-body Green's function calculations. Partial dipole oscillator strengths are also reported for molecular ion formation as well as for all dissociative ionization processes. The measurements have been made by the dipole (e,e) (e,2e) and (e,e + ion) methods, which respectively provide quantitative measurements of photoabsorption, photoelectron spectroscopy and photoionization mass spectrometry at continuously tuneable energies. The measurements of dipole oscillator strengths for production of electronic states of HBr⁺ are combined with those for molecular and dissociative photoionization. These, considered together with the ionization and appearance potentials, provide a quantitative dipole breakdown picture for the ionic photofragmentation pathways of HBr in the energy region up to 40 eV.     

Photodissociation of propargyl bromide and photoionization of the propargyl radical

Velocity map imaging was used to study the 193 nm photodissociation of propargyl bromide C(3)H(3)Br as well as the photoionization dynamics of the resulting propargyl radical C(3)H(3). Images were recorded by using single-photon vacuum ultraviolet ionization of the propargyl radical and by using two-photon resonant, three-photon ionization of the ground state Br((2)P(32)) and spin-orbit excited Br(*)((2)P(12)) atoms. Analysis of these data allowed the determination of the branching ratio Br:Br(*) as well as the photofragment angular distributions. Images of C(3)H(3) produced by the photodissociation of both C(3)H(3)Br and C(3)H(3)Cl were recorded at several energies between 8.97 and 9.12 eV, as well as at 9.86 eV, and showed no obvious internal energy dependence of the relative photoionization cross sections.     

Ultrafast strong-field dissociative ionization dynamics of CH2Br2 probed by femtosecond soft x-ray transient absorption spectroscopy

Femtosecond time-resolved soft x-ray transient absorption spectroscopy based on a high-order harmonic generation source is used to investigate the dissociative ionization of CH(2)Br(2) induced by 800 nm strong-field irradiation. At moderate laser peak intensities (2.0 x 10(14) Wcm(2)), strong-field ionization is accompanied by ultrafast C-Br bond dissociation, producing both neutral Br ((2)P(32)) and Br(*) ((2)P(12)) atoms together with the CH(2)Br(+) fragment ion. The measured rise times for Br and Br(*) are 130+/-22 fs and 74+/-10 fs, respectively. The atomic bromine quantum state distribution shows that the BrBr(*) population ratio is 8.1+/-3.8 and that the Br (2)P(32) state is not aligned. The observed product distribution and the time scales of the photofragment appearances suggest that multiple field-dressed potential energy surfaces are involved in the dissociative ionization process. At higher laser peak intensities (6.2 x 10(14) Wcm(2)), CH(2)Br(2) (+) undergoes sequential ionization to form the metastable CH(2)Br(2) (2+) dication. These results demonstrate the potential of core-level probing with high-order harmonic transient absorption spectroscopy for studying ultrafast molecular dynamics.     

Pulsed field ionization-photoelectron photoion coincidence spectroscopy with synchrotron radiation: the heat of formation of the C2H5+ ion

Pulsed field ionization photoelectron (PFI-PE) spectroscopy combined with ion coincidence detection has been used with multi-bunch synchrotron radiation at the Advance Light Source (ALS) to energy select ions and to measure their breakdown diagram. The resolution for ion state selection achieved with Ar+ (2P3/2, 1/2) employing this PFI-PE-photoion coincidence apparatus is 0.6 meV (full width at half maximum). The production of C2H5+ from C2H5Br was investigated near the dissociative photoionization limit with this pulsed field ionization-threshold photoelectron photoion coincidence (PFI-PEPICO) scheme. Although the PFI-PE spectra of C2H5Br, C2H5I, and benzene show that the production of ions in the Franck-Condon gap regions is quite low, the selectivity for PFI-PE detection and the suppression of prompt electrons is such that we can detect 1 PFI-PE out of 25,000 total electrons s-1. The derived C2H5+ heat of formation from the analysis of the C2H5Br+ breakdown diagram and a critical analysis of other results is 900.5 +/- 2.0 kJ mol-1 at 298 K, or 913.2 +/- 2.0 kJ mol-1 at 0 K. This leads to an ethylene proton affinity at 298 K of 682.0 kJ mol-1. The measured IE of C2H5Br is 10.307 eV.     

Photodissociation dynamics of CBr4 at 267 nm by means of ion velocity imaging

The photodissociation dynamics of CBr4 at 267 nm has been studied using time of flight (TOF) mass spectrometry and ion velocity imaging techniques. The photochemical products are detected with resonance enhanced multiphoton ionization (REMPI) as well as single-photon vacuum ultraviolet ionization at 118 nm. REMPI at 266.65 and 266.71 nm was used to detect the ground Br(2P32) and spin-orbit excited Br(2P12) atoms, respectively. The translational energy and angular distributions are consistent with direct dissociation from an excited triplet state and indirect dissociation from high vibrational levels on the singlet ground state surface. Br2+ ions are also observed in the TOF spectra with a focused 267 nm laser. The counter fragment, CBr2+, is observed when this photolysis laser is unfocused, and photons at 118 nm are used to ionize the radical products. The translational energy distributions of the CBr2+ and Br2+ products can be momentum matched, which indicates that molecular Br2 elimination is one of the primary dissociation channels.     

Multiphoton dissociative ionization of tert-pentyl bromide near 265 nm

We report on the photodissociation dynamics of tert-pentyl bromide near 265 nm investigated by time-sliced velocity map imaging. The speed and angular distributions have been analyzed for both the ground-state Br((2)P(3∕2)) atom (denoted Br) and the spin-orbit excited-state Br((2)P(1∕2)) atom (denoted Br*). The speed distributions of Br and Br* atoms are all found to consist of three Gaussian components, which correlate to three independent dissociation pathways on the excited potential energy surfaces: (1) the high translational energy (E(T)) component from the prompt dissociation along the C-Br stretching mode, (2) the middle E(T) component from the repulsive mode along the C-Br stretching coupled with some bending motions, and (3) the low E(T) component from the repulsive mode along the C-Br stretching coupled with more bending motions. More interestingly, we have also observed the tert-C(5)H(11)(+) ions in 263-267 nm. The near-zero kinetic energy distributions extracted from the three tert-C(5)H(11)(+) images near 265 nm show the typical characteristics that are attributable to multiphoton dissociative ionization, suggesting the existence of a neutral superexcited state of the parent tert-pentyl bromide molecule. The contribution of bromine atoms formed in this dissociative ionization channel adds in the total relative distribution of low E(T) component in the Br*(Br) formation channel, which reasonably explains the abnormal distributions observed in between the middle and low E(T) components in the Br*(Br) formation channel.     

Photoionization of propargyl and bromopropargyl radicals: a threshold photoelectron spectroscopic study

In this Article, we present mass-selected threshold photoelectron spectra of propargyl as well as the 1- and 3-bromopropargyl radicals. The reactive intermediates were produced by flash pyrolysis of suitable precursors and ionized by VUV synchrotron radiation. The TPES of the propargyl radical was simulated using data from a recent high-level computational study. An ionization energy (IE) of 8.71 ± 0.02 eV was obtained, in excellent agreement with computations, but slightly above previous experimental IEs. The pyrolysis of 1,3-dibromopropyne delivers both 1- and 3-bromopropargyl radicals that can be distinguished by their different ionization energies (8.34 and 8.16 eV). To explain the vibrational structure, a Franck-Condon simulation was performed, based on DFT calculations, which can account for all major spectral features. Bromopropargyl photoionizes dissociatively beginning at around 10.1 eV. Cationic excited states of 1- and 3-bromopropargyl were tentatively identified. The dissociative photoionization of the precursor (1,3-dibromopropyne) was also examined, delivering an AE(0K) (C(3)H(2)Br(+)/C(3)H(2)Br(2)) of 10.6 eV.     

Detection of chlorobenzene derivatives using vacuum ultraviolet ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

Vacuum ultraviolet single-photon ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (VUV-SPI-TOFMS) has been applied for the detection of chlorobenzene, o-dichlorobenzene, and o-chlorophenol as surrogates for polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxine/furans (PCDD/F). The photoionization mass spectra of these compounds appear to be fragmentation free in the ionization processes by the VUV-SPI at 10.2 eV (121.6 nm). Quantum chemical calculations support no fragmentation in the photoionization of chlorobenzene derivatives at around 10 eV. The absolute photoionization cross-sections of chlorobenzene, o-dichlorobenzene, and o-chlorophenol were estimated at 10.2 eV. The photoionization cross-section is an important parameter in the detection of chlorobenzene derivatives by the single-photon ionization technique. The detection limit for chlorobenzene is on the order of tenth parts-per-billion volume (ppbv) in the present experimental setup.     

Experimental and quantum-chemical studies on photoionization and dissociative photoionization of CH2Br2

The dissociative photoionization of CH2Br2 in a region approximately 10-24 eV was investigated with photoionization mass spectroscopy using a synchrotron radiation source. An adiabatic ionization energy of 10.25 eV determined for CH2Br2 agrees satisfactorily with predictions of 10.26 and 10.25 eV with G2 and G3 methods, respectively. Observed major fragment ions CH2Br+, CHBr+, and CBr+ show appearance energies at 11.22, 12.59, and 15.42 eV, respectively; minor fragment ions CHBr2+, Br+, and CH2+ appear at 12.64, 15.31, and 16.80 eV, respectively. Energies for formation of observed fragment ions and their neutral counterparts upon ionization of CH2Br2 are computed with G2 and G3 methods. Dissociative photoionization channels associated with six observed fragment ions are proposed based on comparison of determined appearance energies and predicted energies. An upper limit of DeltaH0f,298(CHBr+) < or = 300.7 +/- 1.5 kcal mol(-1) is derived experimentally; the adiabatic ionization energy of CHBr is thus derived to be < or = 9.17 +/- 0.23 eV. Literature values for DeltaH0f,298(CBr+) = 362.5 kcal mol(-1) and ionization energy of 10.43 eV for CBr are revised to be less than 332 kcal mol(-1) and 9.11 eV, respectively. Also based on a new experimental ionization energy, DeltaH0f,298(CH2Br2+) is revised to be 236.4 +/- 1.5 kcal mol(-1).     

Valence and inner-valence shell dissociative photoionization of CO in the 26-33 eV range. II. Molecular-frame and recoil-frame photoelectron angular distributions

Experimental and theoretical results for molecular-frame photoemission are presented for inner-valence shell photoionization of the CO molecule induced by linearly and circularly polarized light. The experimental recoil frame photoelectron angular distributions (RFPADs) obtained from dissociative photoionization measurements where the velocities of the ionic fragment and photoelectron were detected in coincidence, are compared to RFPADs computed using the multichannel Schwinger configuration interaction method. The formalism for including a finite lifetime of the predissociative ion state is presented for the case of general elliptically polarized light, to obtain the RFPAD rather than the molecular frame photoelectron angular distribution (MFPAD), which would be obtained with the assumption of instantaneous dissociation. We have considered photoionization of CO for the photon energies of 26.0 eV, 29.5 eV, and 32.5 eV. A comparison of experimental and theoretical RFPADs allows us to identify the ionic states detected in the experimental studies. In addition to previously identified states, we found evidence for the 2 (2)Δ state with an ionization potential of 25.3 eV and (2)Σ(+) states with ionization potentials near 32.5 eV. A comparison of the experimental and theoretical RFPADs permits us to estimate predissociative lifetimes of 0.25-1 ps for some of the ion states. Consideration of the MFPADs of a series of (2)Π ion states indicates the importance of inter-channel coupling at low photoelectron kinetic energy and the limitations of a single-channel analysis based on the corresponding Dyson orbitals.     

Electronic properties and dissociative photoionization of thiocyanates. Part II. Valence and shallow-core (sulfur and chlorine 2p) regions of chloromethyl thiocyanate, CH2ClSCN

A combination of photoelectron spectroscopy and synchrotron based photoelectron photoion coincidence (PEPICO) spectra has been applied to investigate the electronic structure and the dissociative ionization of the CH(2)ClSCN molecule in the valence region. The PES is assigned with the electronic structure calculations at the outer-valence Green's function and symmetry adapted cluster/configuration interaction (SAC-CI) levels offer an explanation of our experimental results. Upon vacuum ultraviolet irradiation the low-lying radical cation, located at 10.39 eV is formed. The molecular ion is observed in the time-of-flight mass spectra, together with the CH(2)SCN(+) and CH(2)Cl(+) daughter ions. The total ion yield spectra have been measured in the S 2p and Cl 2p regions and several channels have been determined in dissociative photoionization events for the core-excited species. Thus, by using time-of-flight mass spectrometry and synchrotron radiation the relative abundances of the ionic fragments and their kinetic energy release values were obtained from both PEPICO and photoelectron photoion photoion coincidence spectra. Possible fragmentation processes are discussed and compared with that found for the related CH(3)SCN species.     

Far-UV photochemical bond cleavage of n-amyl nitrite: bypassing a repulsive surface

We have investigated the deep-UV photoinduced, homolytic bond cleavage of amyl nitrite to form NO and pentoxy radicals. One-color multiphoton ionization with ultrashort laser pulses through the S(2) state resonance gives rise to photoelectron spectra that reflect ionization from the S(1) state. Time-resolved pump-probe photoionization measurements show that upon excitation at 207 nm, the generation of NO in the v = 2 state is delayed, with a rise time of 283 (16) fs. The time-resolved mass spectrum shows the NO to be expelled with a kinetic energy of 1.0 eV, which is consistent with dissociation on the S(1) state potential energy surface. Combined, these observations show that the first step of the dissociation reaction involves an internal conversion from the S(2) to the S(1) state, which is followed by the ejection of the NO radical on the predissociative S(1) state potential energy surface.     

Thermochemistry of halomethanes CF(n)Br(4-n) (n = 0-3) based on iPEPICO experiments and quantum chemical computations

Internal energy selected bromofluoromethane cations were prepared and their internal energy dependent fragmentation pathways were recorded by imaging photoelectron photoion coincidence spectroscopy (iPEPICO). The first dissociation reaction is bromine atom loss, which is followed by fluorine atom loss in CF(3)Br and CF(2)Br(2) at higher energies. Accurate 0 K appearance energies have been obtained for these processes, which are complemented by ab initio isodesmic reaction energy calculations. A thermochemical network is set up to obtain updated heats of formation of the samples and their dissociative photoionization products. Several computational methods have been benchmarked against the well-known interhalogen heats of formation. As a corollary, we stumbled upon an assignment issue for the ClF heat of formation leading to a 5.7 kJ mol(-1) error, resolved some time ago, but still lacking closure because of outdated compilations. Our CF(3)(+) appearance energy from CF(3)Br confirms the measurements of Asher and Ruscic (J. Chem. Phys. 1997, 106, 210) and Garcia et al. (J. Phys. Chem. A 2001, 105, 8296) as opposed to the most recent result of Clay et al. (J. Phys. Chem. A 2005, 109, 1541). The ionization energy of CF(3) is determined to be 9.02-9.08 eV on the basis of a previous CF(3)-Br neutral bond energy and the CF(3) heat of formation, respectively. We also show that the breakdown diagram of CFBr(3)(+), a weakly bound parent ion, can be used to obtain the accurate adiabatic ionization energy of the neutral of 10.625 ± 0.010 eV. The updated 298 K enthalpies of formation Δ(f)H(o)(g) for CF(3)Br, CF(2)Br(2), CFBr(3), and CBr(4) are reported to be -647.0 ± 3.5, -361.0 ± 7.4, -111.6 ± 7.7, and 113.7 ± 4 kJ mol(-1), respectively.     

Photoelectron imaging of I2- at 5.826 eV

We report the anion photoelectron spectrum of I2- taken at 5.826 eV detachment energy using velocity mapped imaging. The photoelectron spectrum exhibits bands resulting from transitions to the bound regions of the X 1Sigmag+(0g+), A' 3Piu(2u), A 3Piu(1u), and B 3Piu(0u+) electronic states as well as bands resulting from transitions to the repulsive regions of several I2 electronic states: the B' 3Piu(0u-), B" 1Piu(1u), 3Pig(2g), a 3Pig(1g), 3Pig(0g-), and C 3Sigmau+(1u) states. We simulate the photoelectron spectrum using literature parameters for the I2- and I2 ground and excited states. The photoelectron spectrum includes bands resulting from transitions to several high-lying excited states of I2 that have not been seen experimentally: 3Pig(0g-), 1Pig3(1g), 1 3Sigmag-3(0g+), and the 1Sigmag-3(0u-) states of I2. Finally, the photoelectron spectrum at 5.826 eV allows for the correction of a previous misassignment for the vertical detachment energy of the I2 B 3Piu(0u+) state.     

On the photoionization of large molecules

There is no apparent limit to the size of a molecule for which photoionization can occur. It is argued that it is difficult to obtain useful photoionization mass spectra of peptides (above ～ 2000 u), proteins, and oligonucleotides, because of the high internal energy of these polar molecules as a result of the desorption event and because vibrationally excited radical cations readily fragment. Evidence to support this hypothesis is presented from the 118-nm single-photon ionization (SPI) mass spectra of the cyclic decapeptide gramicidin S and of fullerenes, from null SPI results with the linear peptides substance P and gramicidin D and oligonucleotides, and from a variety of data found in the literature. The literature data include mass spectra from jet-cooled peptides, perfluorinated polyethers, collisional ionization of small neutral peptides, and the ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy of polymeric solids.     

Photodissociation dynamics of allyl bromide at 234, 265, and 267 nm

The photodissociation dynamics of allyl bromide was investigated at 234, 265, and 267 nm. A two-dimensional photofragment ion velocity imaging technique coupled with a [2+1] resonance-enhanced multiphoton ionization scheme was utilized to obtain the angular and translational energy distributions of the nascent Br* (2P1/2) and Br (2P3/2) atoms. The Br fragments show a bimodal translational energy distribution, while the Br* fragments reveal one translational energy distribution. The vertical excited energies and the mixed electronic character of excited states were calculated at ab initio configuration interaction method. It is presumed that the high kinetic energy bromine atoms are attributed to the predissociation from 1(pipi*) or 1(pisigma*) state to the repulsive 1(nsigma*) state, and to the direct dissociation from 3(nsigma*) and 3(pisigma*) states, while the low kinetic energy bromine atoms stem from internal conversion from the lowest 3(pipi*) state to 3(pisigma*) state.