Mf. Hineman et al., PROTON-TRANSFER DYNAMICS AND CLUSTER ION FRAGMENTATION IN PHENOL AMMONIA CLUSTERS, The Journal of chemical physics, 99(6), 1993, pp. 4533-4538
Excited-state proton transfer dynamics are reported for the phenol(NH3
)n cluster system. Excited-state proton transfer is shown to occur for
this system by isotopic substitution of the hydroxyl proton and ammon
ia protons. The observed dynamics slow from 80 to 600 ps upon cluster
deuteration. The effects of cluster vibrational energy and ammonia con
centration in the expansion gas are also studied. The results of these
experiments are compared with a previous study [Syage and Steadman, J
. Chem. Phys. 95, 2497 (1991)] which used a single excitation energy a
nd varied ionization energy. Our experiments indicate that a significa
nt amount of cluster ion fragmentation occurs for this system and caut
ion must be exercised in assigning the decays observed in a given ion
mass channel to a particular parent cluster. Due to the difficulties o
f associating a given decay curve with a cluster of particular mass, a
previously proposed model of proton transfer in isolated clusters [Hi
neman et al., J. Chem. Phys. 97, 3341 (1992)] which details the effect
of cluster vibrational energy on the proton transfer rate cannot be a
pplied to the phenol/ammonia system.