Temporary Anion States of Ethene Interacting with Single Molecules of Methane, Ethane, and Water

When an excess electron is added into the π* orbital of ethene, the resulting anion decays by electron autodetachment; that is, it represents an electronic state referred to as a temporary anion or resonance state. Here, the influence of a cluster environment on the energy and lifetime of this state is investigated. The clusters considered are ethene···CH₄, ethene···C₂H₆, and ethene···H₂O. Most of these clusters are systematically constructed so that the solvent interacts with the π system in a specific way, and are thus by construction not minima with respect to all intermolecular degrees of freedom. However, for water, in addition, a minimal energy structure is examined. Systematic variation of the solvent and solvation geometry allows us to identify trends regarding effects due to polarizability, excluded volume, and polarity of the solvent molecules. The resonance parameters of ethene and all temporary cluster anions are computed with the symmetry-adapted cluster-configuration interaction electronic structure method in combination with a complex absorbing potential. This method is well-established for small to intermediate sized molecules. In addition to the study of the solvation effects themselves, the question of how many basis functions are needed on the closed-shell solvating unit is examined.