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arXiv · 2506.10300

Revisiting the electron affinity of selenium

Rui Zhang·Wenru Jie·Jiayi Chen·Qihan Liu·Chuangang Ning
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Abstract

The electron affinity (EA) of atomic selenium, previously established as 16,297.276(9) cm-1 based on the laser photodetachment microscopy (LPM) measurements in 2012, exhibited a significant deviation from other earlier experimental values, yet it remained the accepted reference standard for over a decade. In this letter, we re-examined the EA of Se using the slow-electron velocity-map imaging method and revealed a substantial deviation in the LPM result. Measurements for the different isotopes of Se and the energy-level splitting of the neutral Se atom's 3P2 - 3P1 further verified the accuracy and robustness of our SEVI method. Based on these experimental evidences, we recommended a revised EA(Se) value of 16,297.78(4) cm-1, which is in excellent agreement with the previous laser photodetachment threshold (LPT) experimental results.

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Rui Zhang, Wenru Jie, Jiayi Chen, Qihan Liu, Chuangang Ning. 2025-06-12. Revisiting the electron affinity of selenium. https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.10300

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