Eur. Phys. J. D 46, 281-287 (2008)
https://doi.org/10.1140/epjd/e2007-00318-y

Empirical model for electron impact ionization cross sections of neutral atoms

¹ Department of Applied Physics & Electronic Engineering, University of Rajshahi, 6205 Rajshahi, Bangladesh
² Department of Physics, University of Rajshahi, 6205 Rajshahi, Bangladesh
³ Graduate School of Electronic Science and Technology, Shizuoka University, 3-5-1 Johoku, Hamamatsu, 432-8011, Japan

Corresponding author: ^a mrtalukder@ru.ac.bd

Received: 27 June 2007
Revised: 30 September 2007
Published online: 23 November 2007

Abstract

A simple empirical formula is proposed for the rapid calculation of electron impact total ionization cross sections both for the open- and closed-shell neutral atoms considered in the range 1≤ Z≤92 and the incident electron energies from threshold to about 10⁴ eV. The results of the present analysis are compared with the available experimental and theoretical data. The proposed model provides a fast method for calculating fairly accurate electron impact total ionization cross sections of atoms. This model may be a prudent choice, for the practitioners in the field of applied sciences e.g. in plasma modeling, due to its simple inherent structure.