Fragmentation of the CH2Cl2 molecule by attosecond proton beams and synchrotron radiation

A comparative study for the fragmentation of the CH₂Cl₂ molecule has been performed for collisions with 0.2-2.0 MeV H⁺ beam and 12.0-90.0 eV photons using the time-of-flight coincidence technique. As opposed to the photoionization case, the abundances in the mass spectra are not strongly dependent on the proton collision energy. The main observed fragment, in the proton impact case, was associated to the detachment of a chlorine atom. Combing the information from the molecular orbital energies, one estimates their relative contributions to the total ionization of CH₂Cl₂ by proton impact.