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Physical Review A

Connection between superelastic and inelastic electron-atom collisions involving polarized collision partners

Klaus Bartschat, D. H. Madison

Published Jul 1, 1993• 4 citations
Publisher

Abstract

It is shown how the results of a recent experiment by Jiang, Zuo, Vu\ifmmode \check{s}\else \v{s}\fi{}kovi\ifmmode \acute{c}\else \'{c}\fi{}, and Bederson [Phys. Rev. Lett. 68, 915 (1992)], who investigated low-energy electron scattering from laser-excited polarized sodium atoms in the initial (3p) $^{2}$P${\mathrm{\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}}}_{3/2}$ (F=3, ${\mathit{M}}_{\mathit{F}}$=3) state, can be related to the inelastic 3S\ensuremath{\rightarrow}3P transition involving initially unpolarized electron and atom beams. Hence, this method can provide an independent check of the traditional electron-scattering experiment with unpolarized beams.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.48.836

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It is shown how the results of a recent experiment by Jiang, Zuo, Vu\ifmmode \check{s}\else \v{s}\fi{}kovi\ifmmode \acute{c}\else '{c}\fi{}, and Bederson [Phys. Rev. Lett. 68, 915 (1992)], who investigated low-energy electron scattering from laser-excited polarized sodium atoms in the initial (3p) 2^{2}2P\ifmmode∘\else\textdegree\fi3/2{\mathrm{\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}}}_{3/2}\ifmmode∘\else\textdegree\fi3/2​ (F=3, MF{\mathit{M}}_{\mathit{F}}MF​=3) state, can be related to the inelastic 3S\ensuremath{\rightarrow}3P transition involving initially unpolarized electron and atom beams. Hence, this method can provide an independent check of the traditional electron-scattering experiment with unpolarized beams.
Collisions studies using optically state selected beams is discussed. Measurements of spin resolved differential cross sections for superelastic scattering of electrons from excited sodium atoms (3P) are reported. The excited states are prepared by laser optical pumping with circularly polarized light thus giving a pure atomic state before the collision. A crossed beam arrangement of sodium atoms and electrons is used with a scattered electron detector. Scattered electron intensity as a function of scattering angle, incident electron energy, and relative orientation of the incident electronic and atomic spins is measured. 8 refs., 10 figs.
An experimental investigation of electron - impact induced transitions from the laser - excited 3P state of sodium atom to the 4S and 3D excited states is presented, the main objective being measurement of the atomic collision parameters ( ACPs ) that are related to individual scattering amplitudes. These parameters are complementary to the differential excitation cross - sections and provide finer details on the collisional excitation process. The experiment involved the preparation of the 3P - state with coherent laser radiation of a particular polarisation and measuring the rate of electrons scattered from the laser - excited state as function of laser polarisations. The ACPs were then deduced from these measurements and optical pumping parameters, which account for the optical preparation of the 3P - state. To formulate different measurement schemes, a measurement theory based on the general description of transitions between states of different angular momentum using density matrix formalism is derived. The investigation of the 3P - 4S transition is very similar to the studies of the 3S - 3P excitation performed by superelastic method involving the 3P - 3S scattering in the 'time - inverse' geometry. 'Standard' ACPs are used and, similarly to the superelastic method, the measurements for the 3P - 4S excitation performed in the 'time - inverse' geometry also reveal ACPs for the 4S - 3P de -excitation process. For the more complex 3P - 3D transition, however, the 'standard' ACPs may be less informative. It is shown that certain sums of individual magnetic sublevel excitation probabilities can be measured which may be considered as atomic collision parameters for transitions between P and D - states.
A series of superelastic scattering experiments have been carried out on optically pumped sodium atoms in the 3 2 P 3/2 state. The total polarization P + has been observed at electron energies of 12.1 eV and 22.1 eV referred to the ground state, over a wide range of electron scattering angles. The connections between this parameter, the coherence of the excitation process, and exchange are discussed. Significant departures from P + =1 are observed. A qualitative explanation of this phenomenon is described which provides some insight into the collision process.
Electron scattering by excited sodium atoms has been carried out in a crossed-beam experiment. The atoms have been optically pumped into a well defined hyperfine level (3 2 P 3 2/F=3) by a tunable CW dye laser. For two of the most prominent scattering processes, the 3 2 P to 3 2 S and 3 2 P to 4 2 S transitions, the effect of the anisotropy of the initial state introduced by the laser light is studied in detail and is interpreted in terms of multipole moments describing the optical excitation and the collision process. Possibilities and limitations of the experiment are discussed. Electron collisions may be seen as a test case for the understanding of more involved interaction processes.
We generalize the existing description of collision-induced atomic S\ensuremath{\leftrightarrows}P transitions by spin-polarized electrons on spin-polarized target atoms. Analysis of existing experimental and theoretical data on the 3s\ensuremath{\leftrightarrows}3p transitions in Na determines how closely the ``perfect scattering experiment'' has been achieved to date. Using a newly developed inversion technique, we demonstrate to what extent the various scattering amplitudes can be extracted from present experiments, and how state-of-the-art theory can be used to remove the remaining ambiguities.