Core excitation and autoionising transitions from 1,3Πu states of N2, by near threshold electron impact Original Research Article

The inner-shell excited states, (1s)−1(2pπu) 1,3Π, of N2 have been observed by electron impact excitation, as a function of electron incident energy via their decay, by electronic ejection, to an ionic state of the molecule. The relative cross-sections for the formation of the N2+(X 2Σg) final ionic state, via the decay of these triplet and singlet inner-shell excited states, are compared with predictions of a theoretical model based on the distorted-wave approximation. Results of the distorted-wave calculations for the integral cross-sections for the transitions leading to the triplet and the singlet excited states are also presented.