Collisions of electrons with trimethylamineN(CH3)3molecules

Abstract

Absolute total electron-trimethylamine scattering cross section (TCS) has been measured from $0.8\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\text{to}\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}370\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{eV}$ with a linear electron-transmission method. The experimental TCS energy function is dominated by very pronounced enhancement peaked near $9\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{eV}$. The present TCS agrees qualitatively with low-energy results of Schmieder [Z. Elektrochem. 36, 700 (1930)] but there are substantial differences in the position and peak values. Calculations were also carried out to obtain the integral elastic and ionization cross sections at intermediate and high energies using the independent atom (IAM) and the binary-encounter-Bethe (BEB) approximations, respectively. Their sum, the estimated total cross section, is for intermediate energies in a reasonable agreement with the present experimental TCS data. Furthermore, the measured TCS for $\mathrm{N}{(\mathrm{C}{\mathrm{H}}_{3})}_{3}$ is compared with the TCSs for other nitrous compounds: $\mathrm{N}{\mathrm{H}}_{3}$ and $\mathrm{N}{\mathrm{H}}_{2}\mathrm{C}{\mathrm{H}}_{3}$. The variation of the TCS magnitude across the series of nitrogen-containing molecules [$\mathrm{N}{\mathrm{H}}_{3}$, $\mathrm{N}{\mathrm{H}}_{2}\mathrm{C}{\mathrm{H}}_{3}$, and $\mathrm{N}{(\mathrm{C}{\mathrm{H}}_{3})}_{3}$] is explained in terms of their molecular size.