title: Gas-phase observation of the heterolytic dissociation of negative ions into counter ions: dissociation of [Cu phthalocyanine (SO3)4Na]3-.
abstract: Ion pair formation proceeding in solution at room-temperature, where it is driven by energies of solvation, has been observed in the gas-phase in the collision-induced dissociation of [Cu phthalocyanine (SO3)4Na]3- and [Cu phthalocyanine (SO3)4Na2]2- at low energies. The gas-phase observation of these charge separations into positive and negative ions, seemingly counter-intuitive, is favored sufficiently by thermodynamics to proceed at low collision energies. The combination of a high stability of the negative product anion against electron detachment and a low recombination energy of the departing positive counter ion appears to be the key requirement for such dissociations to proceed at low energies in the gas-phase.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Centre for Research in Mass Spectrometry and Centre for Research in Earth and Space Science, York University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hashemi
authors.forename: Michael J Y
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Jarvis
authors.forename: Diethard K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Bohme