Cross sections for rotational excitations of NH3, PH3, AsH3, and SbH3 by electron impact

A comparison of experimental and theoretical low energy positron scattering from furan

This paper presents a joint experimental and theoretical study of positron scattering from furan. Experimental data were measured using the low energy positron beamline located at the Australian National University and cover an energy range from 1 eV to 30 eV. Cross sections were measured for total scattering, total elastic and inelastic scattering, positronium formation, and differential elastic scattering. Two theoretical approaches are presented: the Schwinger multichannel method and the independent atom method with screening corrected additivity rule. In addition, our data are compared to corresponding electron scattering results from the same target with a number of significant differences observed and discussed.

Positron and electron scattering by glycine and alanine: Shape resonances and methylation effect

We report integral cross sections (ICSs) for both positron and electron scattering by glycine and alanine amino acids. These molecules differ only by a methyl group. We computed the scattering cross sections using the Schwinger multichannel method for both glycine and alanine in different levels of approximation for both projectiles. The alanine ICSs are greater in magnitude than the glycine ICSs for both positron and electron scattering, probably due to the larger size of the molecule. In electron scattering calculations, we found two resonances for each molecule. Glycine presents one at 1.8 eV, and another centered at around 8.5 eV, in the static-exchange plus polarization (SEP) approximation. The ICS for alanine shows one resonance at 2.5 eV and another at around 9.5 eV, also in SEP approximation. The results are in good agreement with most of the data present in the literature. The comparison of the electron scattering ICSs for both molecules indicates that the methylation of glycine destabilizes the resonances, shifting them to higher energies.

Low-energy electron scattering by cellulose and hemicellulose components

We report elastic integral, differential and momentum transfer cross sections for low-energy electron scattering by the cellulose components β-D-glucose and cellobiose (β(1 → 4) linked glucose dimer), and the hemicellulose component β-D-xylose. For comparison with the β forms, we also obtain results for the amylose subunits α-D-glucose and maltose (α(1 → 4) linked glucose dimer). The integral cross sections show double peaked broad structures between 8 eV and 20 eV similar to previously reported results for tetrahydrofuran and 2-deoxyribose, suggesting a general feature of molecules containing furanose and pyranose rings. These broad structures would reflect OH, CO and/or CC σ* resonances, where inspection of low-lying virtual orbitals suggests significant contribution from anion states. Though we do not examine dissociation pathways, these anion states could play a role in dissociative electron attachment mechanisms, in case they were coupled to the long-lived π* anions found in lignin subunits [de Oliveira et al., Phys. Rev. A, 2012, 86, 020701(R)]. Altogether, the resonance spectra of lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose components establish a physical-chemical basis for electron-induced biomass pretreatment that could be applied to biofuel production.