Penning Detachment: An Unstudied, Possibly Important Phenomena

在化学学部实验物理化学项目的这个项目中，R.S. Berry将研究Penning分离，这是一个自由的气态负离子与电子激发的中性原子或分子碰撞后释放电子的过程。该项目是芝加哥大学和捷克海罗夫斯基物理化学研究所两家机构的合作项目。芝加哥实验将使用激光激发中性，而布拉格实验将使用电子冲击激发和随后的电子能量分析。最初，原子、离子和中性的碰撞将建立原理证明。随后的实验将转向简单分子作为供体和靶。彭宁分离过程类似于彭宁电离，研究很少，但它代表了一种新型的气相物质之间的相互作用，它可能在化学气相沉积或其他等离子体过程中起重要作用，例如发生在高层大气中。因此，它具有广泛的影响，从可能改进的制造工艺到更好地理解电离层现象。

In this project in the Experimental Physical Chemistry program of the Chemistry Division, R.S. Berry will study Penning detachment, a process in which a free, gaseous negative ion releases an electron as a result of a collision with an electronically excited neutral atom or molecule. The project is a collaboration of two institutions, The University of Chicago and the Heyrovsky Institute for Physical Chemistry in the Czech Republic. The Chicago experiments will be done with laser excitation of neutrals, while the Prague experiments will use electron impact excitation and subsequent electron energy analysis. Initially atomic ion and neutral collisions will establish the proof of principal. Later experiments will move to simple molecules as donors and targets. %%% The Penning detachment process, which is analogous to Penning ionization, is little studied but represents a new type of interaction between gas phase species which may play an important role in chemical vapor deposition or other plasma processes, such as take place in the upper atmosphere. As such, it has wide-ranging implications, from possibly improved manufacturing processes to a better understanding of ionospheric phenomena.