Abstract
Ab initio methods in conjunction with a large basis set are used to compute the potential energy surfaces of the 12 lowest electronic states of the HNS+ and HSN+ isomeric forms. These potentials are used in discussions of the metastability of these cations and plausible mechanisms for the H+/H + SN+/SN, S/S+ + NH+/NH, N/N+ + SH+/SH ion-molecule reactions. Interestingly, the low rovibrational levels of HSN+(1(2)A '') and HNS+(1(2)A '') electronically excited ions are predicted to be long-lived. Both ions are suggested to be a suitable candidate for light-sensitive NO center dot donor in vivo and as a possible marker for the detection of intermediates in nitrites + H2S reactions at the cellular level. The full spin rovibronic levels of HNS+ are presented, which may assist in the experimental identification of HNS+ and HSN+ ions and in elucidating their roles in astrophysical and biological media. Published by AIP Publishing.