| Mass spectrometry and photoelectron spectroscopy are used to characterize gas phase, negative ions of interest. Experiments were carried out by using various methods of anion generation, and both continuous and pulsed photoelectron spectrometers. The experimental work is complemented by theoretical calculations, exhibiting consistency between both studies. In this dissertation, two main topics are discussed: biomolecules and superhalogens.;Anion photoelectron spectroscopy has been determined to be a powerful tool for investigating the intrinsic properties of building blocks of DNA and RNA. We studied the intrinsic properties of these biomolecules by using thermal vaporization in the continuous mode and infrared desorption/photoemission in the pulsed mode, in order to generate gas phase, intact (parent) anions. Additionally, we clustered these species to mimic chemically relevant environment with various solvent molecules and proton donors. By comparing experiment with theory, we have concluded that electron induced proton transfer not only stabilizes the anionic structure, but also may play a role in preventing the DNA strand breaking process.;Superhalogens are molecules that have electron affinities higher than the chlorine atom (3.6 eV). These usually consist of a central metal atom surrounded by peripheral electronegative atoms such as halogens and oxygen. By using a pulsed arc cluster ion source (PACIS) and an ArF excimer laser for photodetachment, we have successfully generated Mn, Pt, and Cu based superhalogens that all have electron affinities higher than 3.6 eV. Combined with theory, we have studied the neutral and anionic structures and discussed the possibility of producing supersalts, in which the superhalogen anions are balanced with appropriate positive ions. In addition, we discovered that some manganese-based superhalogens have unique features compared to the conventional superhalogens such as carrying large magnetic moments and consisting of different core structures. |
