Electron attachment to the N-substituted amino acids N-methylglycine and N-methylalanine: Effective cleavage of the N-Cα bond at sub-excitation energies

► Electron capture by N-methylglycine and N-methylalanine leads to effective cleavage of the N-Cα bond. ► The predominant anion is due to the loss of hydrogen atom resulting in the formation of (M-H)−. ► Electron attachment process is purely dissociative.