Synchrotron radiation studies of gas phase molecules : from hydrogen to DNA sugars

Abstract: This thesis summarises experimental results on the molecular spectroscopy of gas phase molecules excited by synchrotron radiation in the VUV and soft X-ray regions. We have used three different detection techniques, photon induced fluorescence spectroscopy, photoionisation mass spectroscopy and near edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy to study molecular deuterium, hydrogen sulphide, ammonia, methanol, pyridine, pyridazine, pyrimidine, pyrazine, s-triazine, and 2-deoxy-D-ribose, the last one also known as the DNA sugar. Out of this variety of techniques and molecules we have shown that: (1) high resolution dispersed fluorescence allows us to identify vibrational and rotational bands in molecular deuterium, as well as to estimate the predissociation probability of the same molecule [paper I]; (2) the main species fluorescing after core excitation of methane, ammonia [paper III], hydrogen sulphide [paper II], pyridine, pyrimidine and s-triazine is H Balmer α, followed by fluorescence from ionised species, molecular bands and Balmer β, γ , δ; (3) the Rydberg enhancement seen in fluorescence measurements of water [Melero et al. PRL 96 (2006) 063003], corroborated later in H2S [paper II], NH3 [paper III] and CH4 [paper III] and postulated as general behaviour for molecules formed by low-Z atoms, is also seen in larger organic cyclic molecules, e.g. azabenzenes; (4) when dissociative ionisation of pyridine, pyridazine, pyrimidine, pyrazine, s-triazine and 2-deoxy-D-ribose occurs, concerted bond rearrangement and nuclear motion takes place as opposed to stepwise dissociation [papers V and VI].