Thermal electron attachment to nitrous oxide was investigated in the range −66 to 215°C. The attachment was found to be dissociative in nature with an activation energy of10.4±0.4kcal/mole. The activation energy is thought to arise from electron attachment to molecules thermally excited primarily in the bending mode. In an attempt to explain the activation energy a simple Morse function was employed. Potential energy as a function of internuclear distance for both N2O and N2O−was generated at different N2O bond angles. In this manner a three‐dimensional surface for the reaction,N2O (linear)→N2O (bent)→+e−N2+O−,was obtained. The potential surface has a minimum at a bond angle∼160°. The electron affinity of N2O is estimated at6.2±4kcalfrom the calculated N2O−potential‐energy surface. This is in general agreement with other reported values.
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