Dissociative Ionization of N2 and N2O by Rare-Gas Ion Impact

Abstract

Cross sections for the reactionsNe++N2→N++N+Ne,Kr++N2O→O++N2+Kr,Ar++N2→N++N+Ar,Kr++N2O→N+NO++Kr,are measured as functions of primary ion kinetic energy. All of these reactions exhibit thresholds, and a semiempirical formula is fitted to the data near to the threshold energies. Despite the isoelectronic character of the products of Kr++N2O→O++N2+Kr and Kr++N2O→N+NO++Kr, their behavior differs in that the former reaction proceeds by the energetically most favorable channel while the latter does not; the reaction Kr++N2O→N+NO++Kr is energetically allowed for all primary ion kinetic energies but appears not to proceed below kinetic energies of about 2.4 eV in the center-of-mass coordinate system. The cross sections of reactions involving only atomic products do not exhibit any striking, qualitative differences from those cross sections involving molecular products.