Abstract
The photoelectron spectra of some unsaturated hydrocarbons in the region 15–26 eV are presented. As in the previous work on saturated hydrocarbons, ionization potentials for carbon 2s-type molecular orbitals are reported and analysed on the basis of a simple Hückel model. Good agreement with the model is obtained after due consideration of the possible variations in α and β. Benzene is apparently an exceptional case and the reasons for its high 2b1u energy of 15.45 eV are discussed. It is shown that the ionization potential predictions from a simple Hückel model incorporating a variable bond-length correction compare favourably with the results from more sophisticated quantum-mechanical calculations.