Surface-induced dissociation of singly and multiply charged fullerene ions

Collisions of singly and multiply charged ions C-60(z+) (z=1,2,3,4,5) with a hydrocarbon-covered stainless steel surface have been investigated; product ions of fragmentation and pickup reactions were determined as a function of the collision energy (100-500 eV) and the projectile charge z. All ions scattered off the surface are singly charged. The extent of fragmentation increases with the collision energy and the projectile charge. However, the increase of fragmentation with the charge of the projectile is less pronounced than expected from a full conversion of electronic energy, gained in the neutralization process, into internal energy of the ion. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S0021-9606(00)71833-2].