https://doi.org/10.1007/s100530170069
An inelastic threshold in electron - alkali cluster collisions
Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90089-0484, USA
Corresponding author: a kresin@physics.usc.edu
Received:
24
November
2000
Published online: 15 September 2001
An analysis of integral cross sections for slow electron collisions with neutral sodium clusters and nanoparticles reveals that, in addition to an effective negative ion formation channel, there exists a strong inelastic threshold-type process which appears above a collision energy of 1-1.3 eV. We show that it can be plausibly associated with the onset of direct electron-induced cluster fragmentation. This result highlights the importance of understanding the dynamics of electron-vibrational energy transfer in nanoclusters, including the relative probability of direct vs. statistical energy transfer.
PACS: 36.40.-c – Atomic and molecular clusters / 36.40.Qv – Stability and fragmentation of clusters / 34.80.Ht – Dissociation and dissociative attachment by electron impact
© EDP Sciences, Società Italiana di Fisica, Springer-Verlag, 2001
