Low-energy electron transmission and secondary-electron emission experiments on crystalline and molten long-chain alkanes

This paper describes the results of low-energy electron transmission and secondary-electron emission experiments on thin films of long-chain alkanes deposited on metal substrates. The spectral changes due to crystal-melt phase transition were measured in situ in both experiments. The ground-state energy $V_0$ of the quasifree electron in crystalline state was determined to be 0.5±0.1 eV. The value of $V_0$ for the molten state was found to be negative. Further, in the crystalline state evidence is found for a direct correspondence between the transmission maxima and the high value of the density of states in the conduction bands.