ESD from Physisorbed Layers on Metal Surfaces: Theoretical Investigation of Two Desorption Scenarios

Abstract

Angle resolved kinetic energy distributions of ESD-desorbed neutrals physisorbed on metal surfaces are theoretically compared for the Antoniewicz and the Wave Packet Squeezing (WPS) scenarios of desorption. Three-dimensional evolution of the system in the electronic meta-stable state is accounted for. It is shown that the shapes of the angle dependent yields are very similar for both models and admit a variety of angular behavior from very narrowly centered around the surface normal to those in which the particles desorb predominantly away from it. In contrast, kinetic energy distributions, particularly in the direction of the surface normal, can be very different in both models and, in some cases of the Antoniewicz scenario, they may exhibit a multi-peak structure without different adsorption states being present.