Ion-pair formation observed in a pulsed-field ionization photoelectron spectroscopic study of HF

Topological Analysis of the Electron Density Distribution in Perturbed Systems. I. Effect of Charge on the Bond Properties of Hydrogen Fluoride

Within the framework of the molecular orbital (MO) theory, the addition of one electron to the 4sigma antibonding orbital of the neutral (F...H) system or the removal of one electron from its pi nonbonding orbitals, leading to (F...H)- and to (F...H)+, has permitted the investigation of these charge perturbations on the bond properties of the hydrogen fluoride molecule by using the topological analysis of rho(r). For (F...H), (F...H)-, and (F...H)+, the topological and energetic properties calculated at the F...H bond critical point (BCP) have been related to the 3sigma bonding molecular orbital (BMO) distribution, as this orbital is the main contributor to rho(r) at the interatomic surface. The analysis has been carried out at several F...H internuclear distances, ranging from 0.8 to 3.0 A. As far as the BMO distribution results from its interaction with the average Coulomb and exchange potential generated by the charge filling the other MOs, and in particular by the pi and 4sigma electrons, the comparison between the BCP properties calculated for the charged systems and those corresponding to the neutral one permits the interpretation of the differences in terms of the charge perturbation on BMO. Along with the BCP properties of (F...H), (F...H)-, and (F...H)+, the interaction energy magnitudes of these systems have been also calculated within the same range of internuclear distances, indicating that the applied perturbations do not break the F-H bond but soften it, giving rise to the stable species (F-H)- and (F-H)+. Comparing the three systems at their equilibrium geometries, the most stable configuration, which corresponds to the unperturbed (F...H) system, shows the highest quantity and the most locally concentrated charge density distribution, along with the largest total electron energy density magnitude, at the interatomic surface as a consequence of the BMO contraction toward the fluorine nucleus in (F...H)+ and of the BMO expansion toward both nuclei in (F...H)-. On the other hand, if the comparison is carried out at the equilibrium distance of (F...H) (d(eq)0), this one exhibits both the smallest total energy density magnitude and the largest quantity of bonding charge at the interatomic surface. Hence, being the signature of the most stable configuration, the characteristic magnitudes of the neutral system rho(d(eq)0), inverted triangle2 rho(d(eq)0), and H(d(eq)0) appear as boundary conditions at the interatomic surface of its unperturbed and relaxed electron distribution.

Vacuum ultraviolet spectroscopy and chemistry by photoionization and photoelectron methods

The recent developments of vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) laser and third generation synchrotron radiation sources, together with the introduction of pulsed field ionization (PFI) schemes for photoion-photoelectron detection, have had a profound impact on the field of VUV spectroscopy and chemistry. Owing to the mediation of near-resonant autoionizing states, rovibronic states of ions with negligible Franck-Condon factors for direct photoionization can be examined by VUV-PFI measurements with rotational resolutions. The VUV-PFI spectra thus obtained have provided definitive ionization energies (IEs) for many small molecules. The recent synchrotron-based PFI-photoelectron-photoion coincidence experiments have demonstrated that dissociative photoionization thresholds for a range of molecules can be determined to the same precision as in PFI-photoelectron measurements. Combining appropriate dissociation thresholds and IEs measured in PFI studies, thermochemical data for many neutrals and cations can be determined with unprecedented precision. The further development of two-color excitation-ionization schemes promises to expand the scope of spectroscopic and chemical applications using the photoionization-photoelectron method.