Binding energy of C60+ revisited – What is the problem?

The binding energy of C60+ (or C60) has been the subject of numerous experimental reports. Published values range from Ea=2–13 eV for C2 loss from C60+. One reason for this enormous scatter is the fact that the transition state of metastable C60 has unusual properties which, if not taken into account in the data analysis, lead to erroneous binding energies. We critically examine and re-analyze previously published reports within a common framework (with an A-factor of 5×1019 s−1 or, equivalently, a Gspann factor of 33.8). The resulting binding energies of 17 previously reported gas-phase studies agree surprisingly well with each other, and their average, Ea=10.0±0.2 eV, agrees with theory.