The Far Ultraviolet Absorption Spectra of Simple Alkyl Amines

Abstract

A quantitative study of the absorption spectra of ammonia, the three methyl and the three ethyl amines, has been made in the region 39 000 to 63 000 cm−1. Three electronic transitions have been observed in most cases. The first is of low intensity particularly in the secondary amines, the second is of higher intensity and increases from the primary to the tertiary compound, and the third, which is only partially covered by these measurements, is of intermediate intensity. The positions of all transitions, particularly the second, are influenced by alkyl substitution. These transitions are discussed in relation to the spectrum of ammonia. Vibrational structure, present in ethyl amine, methyl amine, and dimethyl amine, has been analyzed in part.