Comment on “Electron-induced bond breaking at low energies in HCOOH and glycine: The role of very short-livedσ∗anion states”

Abstract

Recent model calculations by Gallup et al. [Phys. Rev. A79, 042710 (2009)] suggest that low-energy dissociative electron attachment to formic acid can be explained solely in terms of a very short-lived ${\ensuremath{\sigma}}^{\ensuremath{\ast}}$ anion state and that no ${\ensuremath{\sigma}}^{\ensuremath{\ast}}/{\ensuremath{\pi}}^{\ensuremath{\ast}}$ coupling is required. We argue that this interpretation of the experimental data, which is at odds with our earlier study, is flawed.