Energy releases in the fission of multiply charged C60 ions

We have studied electron-transfer and collision-induced fragmentation processes in collisions between slow highly charged ions and C60 molecules. By using a position sensitive detector, located after a time-of-flight spectrometer, we obtain recoil energies of fragments resulting from post-collisional disintegration of multiply charged C60 ions. We deduce kinetic energy releases (KERs) for the cases in which multiply charged C60 ions emit either a single C2+ ion or a neutral C2-unit. We find that C584+ ions predominately are due to the emission of a neutral C2 molecule. Model calculations of KER-values resulting from C60r+ ions emitting a C2+ ion are presented, and compared with the corresponding experimental results for C60r+ with 5≤r≤9