Aboslute clustering effects on electron attachment

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Electron attachment plays an important role in radiation chemistry, for example in DNA damage and ozone depletion. Detailed understanding and quantification of electron attachment processes in isolated molecules and condensed environments is therefore essential to model radiation effects on the nanoscale. My EPSRC CAF probes electron attachment dynamics and reactive pathways in selected biomolecular clusters, building on recent advances such as the observation of electron driven proton transfer in Watson Crick pairs [Bowen et al. ChemPhysChem 11 (2010) 880]. However, relatively little is known about how clustering modifies the absolute probabilities for electron attachment induced processes. While theoretical calculations by my collaborators Fabrikant and Gorfinkiel [J. Chem. Phys. 136 (2012) 184301] have provided evidence for strong enhancements in specific cluster configurations, absolute experimental data for electron attachment to clusters are extremely rare. This project is centered on developing an original technique to produce neutral mass-selected beams with known target density for electron attachment experiments. The method involves neutralization of mass-selected cluster anions by electron photo-detachment from specific weakly-bound anionic states, with minimal change in stability and hence dissociation. The project will provide a breakthrough in quantifying the effects of the local chemical environment on electron attachment induced processes.