Production of the Molecular Di-cation ArN2+ in the Reaction Ar2+ + N2

Molecular di-cations are of particular interest due to their possible metastability with respect to the Coulomb explosion. Such metastable states may be used as energy storage. We have measured the cross section for the formation of the molecular di-cation ArN2+ in the reaction of Ar2+ with N2 at relative collision energies from thermal to 20 eV. This result demonstrates the possibility to produce molecular di-cations containing rare gases in chemical reactions. This method may offer advantages over the direct ionization of precursor species.