Kinetic Energy Release Distributions for C⁺₂ Emission from Multiply Charged C₆₀ and C₇₀ Fullerenes

We present asystematic study of experimental kinetic energy release distributions for the asymmetric fission processes Cq+60 C(iq-1\u3c)+70+ C+2 and C q+70 C(q-1)+60+ C+ 2 for mother ions incharge states q 4-8 produced incollisions with slow highly charged ions. Somewhat to our surprise, we find that the KERD for asymmetric fission from Cq+60 are considerably wider and have larger most likely values than the Cq+70 distributions inthe corresponding charge states when q \u3e 4

Two-Center Interference in p-H2 Electron-Transfer Collisions

We report on measurements of transfer excitation in collisions of 0.3-1.3 MeV protons with spatially oriented H2 molecules. Evidences of two center interference are found in the angular distribution of the molecule after a transfer excitation process and directly in the projectile angular scattering distributions. These features can be explained in a way which is analogous to that for the interferences in Young\u27s classical double slit experiment: The fast projectiles preferentially capture electrons close to either of the molecular nuclei, and thereby they change their momenta and de Broglie wavelengths. The waves emerging from the two \u27slits\u27 of the molecule interfere yielding the observed interference structure

Failure of hydrogenation in protecting polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from fragmentation

A recent study of soft X-ray absorption in native and hydrogenated coronene cations, C$_{24}$H$_{12+m}^+$ $m=0-7$, led to the conclusion that additional hydrogen atoms protect (interstellar) Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH) molecules from fragmentation [Reitsma et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 113, 053002 (2014)]. The present experiment with collisions between fast (30-200 eV) He atoms and pyrene (C$_{16}$H$_{10+m}^+$, $m=0$, 6, and 16) and simulations without reference to the excitation method suggests the opposite. We find that the absolute carbon-backbone fragmentation cross section does not decrease but increases with the degree of hydrogenation for pyrene molecules.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figure

Evidence of Wave-Particle Duality for Single Fast Hydrogen Atoms

We report the direct observation of interference effects in a Young\u27s double-slit experiment where the interfering waves are two spatially separated components of the de Broglie wave of single 1.3 MeV hydrogen atoms formed close to either target nucleus in H++H2 electron-transfer collisions. Quantum interference strongly influences the results even though the hydrogen atoms have a de Broglie wavelength, λdB, as small as 25 fm

Radiative cooling of polyyne anions: C4H- and C6H-

The time-dependent photodetachment action spectra of the linear hydrocarbon anions C4H- and C6H- are investigated using the cryogenic electrostatic ion storage ring DESIREE. Radiative cooling characteristics of the ions on the millisecond to second timescale are probed by monitoring changes in the spectra as the ions cool by spontaneous infrared (IR) emission. A simple harmonic cascade (SHC) model is used to model the cooling processes. The cooling rates, extracted using Non-negative Matrix Factorization (NMF), are fit with 1/e lifetimes of 19 {plus minus} 2 s and 3.0 {plus minus} 0.2 s for C4H- and C6H-, respectively. For C4H-, the adiabatic detachment energy is determined from the cold ions' photodetachment spectra to be 3.45 {plus minus} 0.02 eV. The photodetachment spectrum and the ultraslow radiative cooling dynamics interpreted in the present work provide important data for understanding the thermal cooling properties of linear hydrocarbon anions and for refining the formation and destruction processes of these anions in astrochemical models

Experimental radiative cooling rates of a Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon cation

Several small Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) have been identified recently in the Taurus Molecular Cloud (TMC-1) using radio telescope observations. Reproducing the observed abundances of these molecules has been a challenge for astrochemical models. Rapid radiative cooling of PAHs by Recurrent Fluorescence (RF), the emission of optical photons from thermally populated electronically excited states, has been shown to efficiently stabilize small PAHs following ionization, augmenting their resilience in astronomical environments and helping to rationalized their observed high abundances. Here, we use a novel method to experimentally determine the radiative cooling rate of the cation of 1-cyanonaphthalene (C10H7CN, 1-CNN), the neutral species of which has been identified in TMC-1. Laser-induced dissociation rates and kinetic energy release distributions of 1-CNN cations isolated in an cryogenic electrostatic ion-beam storage ring are analysed to track the time evolution of the vibrational energy distribution of the initially hot ion ensemble as it cools. The measured cooling rate is in good agreement with the previously calculated RF rate coefficient. Improved measurements and models of the RF mechanism are needed to interpret astronomical observations and refine predictions of the stabilities of interstellar PAHs

Efficient stabilization of cyanonaphthalene by fast radiative cooling and implications for the resilience of small PAHs in interstellar clouds

After decades of searching, astronomers have recently identified specific Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in space. Remarkably, the observed abundance of cyanonaphthalene (CNN, C10H7CN) in the Taurus Molecular Cloud (TMC-1) is six orders of magnitude higher than expected from astrophysical modeling. Here, we report unimolecular dissociation and radiative cooling rate coefficients of the 1-CNN isomer in its cationic form. These results are based on measurements of the time-dependent neutral product emission rate and kinetic energy release distributions produced from an ensemble of internally excited 1-CNN+ studied in an environment similar to that in interstellar clouds. We find that Recurrent Fluorescence – radiative relaxation via thermally populated electronic excited states – efficiently stabilizes 1-CNN+, owing to a large enhancement of the electronic transition probability by vibronic coupling. Our results help explain the anomalous abundance of CNN in TMC-1 and challenge the widely accepted picture of rapid destruction of small PAHs in space