Temperature dependencies of ternary ion–molecule association reactions yielding N+3, N+4, and (CO)+2

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Abstract
The temperature dependencies of four ternary positive ion–molecule association reactions yielding the products N+3, N+4, and (CO)+2 have been studied using a high pressure pulsed source. The pressure range 0.5 to 4.0 Torr and the temperature range 220 to 500 K were examined. When the experiments were conducted in a pure gas, the third-order rate coefficients were found to follow an overall T−n dependence with 2.1≤n≤2.4. For the case of N+4 formation in a mixture of helium and nitrogen, a power law dependence was not found. The measured pressure and temperature dependencies indicate that the low-pressure limit for all of the reactions extends to neutral number densities as high as 1017 cm−3 throughout the experimental temperature range. The measurements support the existence of a temperature dependence in the stabilization of the intermediate complex for both molecular and atomic third bodies. The results are discussed in light of current models of the ternary association process.

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