Alanate Anion, AlH4 –: Photoelectron Spectrum and Computations

• Published in: The journal of physical chemistry. A, Molecules, spectroscopy, kinetics, environment, & general theory Vol. 118; no. 37; pp. 8158 - 8162
• Main Authors: Graham, J. D, Buytendyk, A. M, Zhang, X, Collins, E. L, Kiran, B, Gantefoer, G, Eichhorn, B. W, Gutsev, G. L, Behera, S, Jena, P, Bowen, K. H
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Chemical Society 18-09-2014
• ISSN: 1089-5639; 1520-5215
• DOI: 10.1021/jp500678n

The alanate anion, AlH4 –, was generated in the gas phase using a pulsed arc cluster ionization source. Its photoelectron spectrum was then measured with 193 nm photons. The spectrum consists of a broad feature, spanning electron binding energies from 3.8 eV to over 5.3 eV. This band reflects the photodetachment transitions between the ground state of the AlH4 – anion and the ground state of its thermodynamically unstable neutral counterpart, AlH4. The vertical detachment energy (VDE) of AlH4 – was measured to be 4.4 eV. Additionally, VDE values were also computed in a comprehensive theoretical study and compared both with the previously computed value and with our experimentally determined value.