Giant Resonance Phenomena in the Electron Impact Ionization of Heavy Atoms and Ions

Abstract

Heavy atoms and ions offer an interesting opportunity to study atomic physics in a region where the atomic structure is dominated by the interelectronic interactions. One illustration of this is the profound term dependence of atomic orbitals for certain configurations of heavy atoms and ions. This subject is extensively discussed elsewhere in the proceedings to this Institute. The present paper deals with another manifestation of resonance behavior, namely the appearance of giant scattering resonances in the cross sections for ionization of heavy atoms by electron impact. Such resonant structures arise from the double well nature of the scattering potential and have recently been identified in the cross sections for the electron impact ionization of several xenon-like ions.¹ In the present report, we summarize the results of calculations showing similar effects for a variety of other ions.