title: Absolute fragmentation cross sections in atom-molecule collisions: scaling laws for non-statistical fragmentation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon molecules.
abstract: We present scaling laws for absolute cross sections for non-statistical fragmentation in collisions between Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH/PAH(+)) and hydrogen or helium atoms with kinetic energies ranging from 50 eV to 10 keV. Further, we calculate the total fragmentation cross sections (including statistical fragmentation) for 110 eV PAH/PAH(+) + He collisions, and show that they compare well with experimental results. We demonstrate that non-statistical fragmentation becomes dominant for large PAHs and that it yields highly reactive fragments forming strong covalent bonds with atoms (H and N) and molecules (C6H5). Thus nonstatistical fragmentation may be an effective initial step in the formation of, e.g., Polycyclic Aromatic Nitrogen Heterocycles (PANHs). This relates to recent discussions on the evolution of PAHNs in space and the reactivities of defect graphene structures.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Stockholm University, S-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Stockholm University, S-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gatchell
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Stockholm University, S-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Stockett
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Stockholm University, S-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Alexander
authors.affiliation: Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Physics, M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Leninskie Gory, 119991 Moscow, Russia.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: CIMAP, UMR 6252, CEA/CNRS/ENSICAEN/Université de Caen Basse-Normandie, bd Henri Becquerel, BP 5133, F-14070 Caen Cedex 05, France.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rousseau
authors.affiliation: CIMAP, UMR 6252, CEA/CNRS/ENSICAEN/Université de Caen Basse-Normandie, bd Henri Becquerel, BP 5133, F-14070 Caen Cedex 05, France.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Domaracka
authors.affiliation: CIMAP, UMR 6252, CEA/CNRS/ENSICAEN/Université de Caen Basse-Normandie, bd Henri Becquerel, BP 5133, F-14070 Caen Cedex 05, France.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Maclot
authors.affiliation: CIMAP, UMR 6252, CEA/CNRS/ENSICAEN/Université de Caen Basse-Normandie, bd Henri Becquerel, BP 5133, F-14070 Caen Cedex 05, France.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Delaunay
authors.affiliation: CIMAP, UMR 6252, CEA/CNRS/ENSICAEN/Université de Caen Basse-Normandie, bd Henri Becquerel, BP 5133, F-14070 Caen Cedex 05, France.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Adoui
authors.affiliation: CIMAP, UMR 6252, CEA/CNRS/ENSICAEN/Université de Caen Basse-Normandie, bd Henri Becquerel, BP 5133, F-14070 Caen Cedex 05, France.
authors.forename: B A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Huber
authors.affiliation: Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, 9747AG Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Schlathölter
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Stockholm University, S-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: H T
authors.initials: HT
authors.lastname: Schmidt
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Stockholm University, S-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Cederquist
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Stockholm University, S-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zettergren