Afterglow Studies of the Reactions He+, He(23S), and O+ with Vibrationally Excited N2

Abstract

The following reactions have been measured as a function of N2 vibrational temperature from 300°K to 6000°K: He++N2→N++N+He →N2+ + He, He(23S) + N2→N2 + + He + e, O+ + N2→NO+ + N. Reactions (1) and (3) are the first ion–molecule reactions to be measured as a function of vibrational temperature of the neutral. The rate constants for Reactions (1) and (2) are found to be insensitive to the N2 vibrational temperature. Reaction (3) increases its rate constant by about a factor of 40 with increased N2 vibrational temperature. The branching ratio (1a) to (1b) increases measurably with N2 vibrational temperature.