Abstract
BY pulse radiolysis of aqueous solutions at room temperature, new absorption bands for H, OH, D, OD and eaq− in the ultraviolet region down to 188 nm have been observed1,2 and recently confirmed3. The favoured interpretation was a redshift of the absorption band of water caused by perturbation by the solutes (H, D, eaq−) similar to the β-band displacement in alkali halide crystals1. It was also suggested that such a band may exist in liquid ammonia, implying that it is a general phenomenon associated with the solvated electron. Furthermore, the transient spectrum obtained by pulse radiolysis of pure liquid ammonia (−45 °C) shows, in addition to the broad infrared absorption of the solvated electron, two unidentified bands in the ultraviolet region4. To study optical properties in this range, we chose metal–ammonia solutions which are relatively stable although their decomposition leads to the amide ion which itself absorbs strongly in the same region. Our findings strongly support the hypothesis, though amide and hydrogen are the only products and have been thoroughly studied.
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BILLIAU, F., BELLONI, J. & SAITO, E. Ultraviolet absorption by metal–ammonia solutions. Nature 263, 47–48 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1038/263047a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/263047a0
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