EXPERIMENTAL-EVIDENCE FOR THE ENTROPY EFFECT IN COULOMBIC CLUSTER FISSION

Authors
BRECHIGNAC C CAHUZAC P DEFRUTOS M KEBAILI N SARFATI A AKULIN V
Citation
C. Brechignac et al., EXPERIMENTAL-EVIDENCE FOR THE ENTROPY EFFECT IN COULOMBIC CLUSTER FISSION, Physical review letters, 77(2), 1996, pp. 251-254
Citations number
15
Categorie Soggetti
Physics
Journal title
Physical review letters → ACNP
ISSN journal
00319007
Volume
77
Issue
2
Year of publication
1996
Pages
251 - 254
Database
ISI
SICI code
0031-9007(1996)77:2<251:EFTEEI>2.0.ZU;2-K
Abstract
Coulombic fission of warmed triply charged potassium ion clusters K-n( 3+), with n = 54-105, is studied by unimolecular dissociation mass spe ctroscopy. Binary fission is shown to occur predominantly with an asym metrical character which attenuates as the size of the cluster increas es. Such a result cannot be interpreted by energetic considerations un less the entropy contribution of discrete atoms is taken into account.