Plasmon assisted isomerization in naphthalene and azulene

Abstract

Synopsis Plasmon excitation in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons is a dominant excitation mode in fast charged particle collisions. Excitations of this nature lead to several secondary processes like ejection of neutral atomic or molecular fragments. The present work explores the influence of plasmon excitation on isomerization on two small size PAHs namely, naphthalene and azulene. Moreover, the existence of double plasmon excitation is demonstrated with the help of experimental observations of dication dissociation and plasmon excitation model calculations.