In this paper general concepts relating to, and recent advances in, the study of negative ions of polyatomic molecules are discussed with emphasis on halocarbons. The topics dealt with in the paper are as follows: basic electron attachment processes, modes of electron capture by molecules, short-lived transient negative ions, dissociative electron attachment to ground-state molecules and to "hot" molecules (effects of temperature on electron attachment), parent negative ions, effect of density, nature, and state of the medium on electron attachment, electron attachment to electronically excited molecules, the binding of attached electrons to molecules ("electron afflinity"), and the basic and the applied significance of negative-ion studies.
Basic -Electron Attachment ProcessesThis paper deals with negative ions formed in electron-molecule collisions at low energies (<15 eV). Negative ions produced at higher energies (e.g., ion-pair processes) or in collisions of molecules with electronically-excited species (e.g., metastable atoms, Rydberg states) will not be discussed. The basic processes to be considered, then, can be classified as electron attachment to ground state molecules, to "hot" molecules, or to electronically excited molecules.Electron attachment to ground state molecules predominantly in their lowest state(s) of internal excitation may be represented by the scheme of Eqs. (1)