Dissociative-electron-attachment cross sections:: A comparative study of NO2 and O3 -: art. no. 052710

Absolute cross sections for dissociative electron attachment (DEA) to NO2 have been measured and compared with that of O-3. A striking similarity is observed in the dissociation channels and the relative cross sections between the two molecules. This similarity is interpreted in terms of a common mechanism for electron capture to the two molecules and is exploited to characterize the nature of the NO2 resonances in analogy with O-3, using specific quantum chemical calculations as well as experimental data. This experimental observation and its interpretation seeks to direct attention to a previously uncommented on aspect of the DEA phenomenon in relation to molecules that are isoelectronically unrelated. The observation also tends to highlight the dominance of electronic polarizability in the electron-molecule scattering potential leading to capture.