Total cross section measurement for electron scattering from chlorine molecules in the energy region from 0.8 to 600 eV

Total scattering cross sections for chlorine molecules by electron impact are determined experimentally for impact energies from 0.8 to 600 eV. Elastic scattering cross sections are also determined theoretically. The results above 23 eV are the first rigorous report on these processes. The present results are compared, for the energy dependence and magnitude, with the previous measurements in the energy region they overlap. Well separated peaks are observed around 7.8 and 12 eV, with the one at 7.8 eV being attributed to dissociative electron attachment, while that at 12 eV is speculated to be due to ion-pair formation through direct dissociation. The present elastic cross sections are found to show a similar shape to the total cross section, although the magnitude is smaller by from a few per cent below 30 eV to a factor of two at 100 eV.