Bond selective dissociative electron attachment to thymine.

Free-electron attachment to thymine and partially deuterated thymine, where D replaces H at all carbon atoms, is studied in the electron energy range from about 0 to 15 eV. The formation of fragment anions that are formed by the loss of one or two H (D) atoms is analyzed as a function of the incident electron energy using a crossed electron/neutral beam apparatus in combination with a quadrupole mass spectrometer. By using partially deuterated thymine and quantum-chemical calculation a bond selectivity for the loss of one and two hydrogen atoms is observed that is determined only by the kinetic energy of the incident electron.