Quantum interference effect on low-energy He atomic beam scattering at the surface of He II

The specular reflection coefficient for low-energy ⁴He atoms incident on the free surface of superfluid ⁴He is calculated as a single particle motion coupled to the ripplon field in an effective surface potential. We find a characteristic dip in the reflection coefficient as an interference effect for the truncated surface potential.     

Stopping power of low-energy deuterons in 3He gas

The stopping power of atomic and molecular deuterons in ³He gas was measured over the range E _d = 10 to 100 keV using the ³He pressure dependence of the ³He(d,p) ⁴He reaction yield. At energies above 30 keV, the observed stopping power values are in good agreement with a standard compilation. However, near 18 keV the experimental values drop by a factor 50 below the extrapolated values of the compilation. In a simple model, the behavior is due to the minimum 1s↦2s electron excitation of the He target atoms (= 19.8 eV, corresponding to E _d = 18.2 keV), i.e. it is a quantum effect, by which the atoms become nearly transparent for the ions.     

Spatial evolution of pulses of low-energy phonons in liquid He

The system of equations that describes the temporal and spatial evolution of low-energy phonons (l-phonons) is obtained for the cases of plane and axial symmetry. From the solutions of these equations, we discuss the time-resolved measurements of the angular distribution of l-phonons. These show a rather unusual mesa shape with a flat top in the direction normal to the heater. We consider that the flat top is due to the creation of high-energy phonons (h-phonons).     

Studying the low-energy region of the 177m Lu gamma spectrum

High-precision measurements of the relative intensities of KX- and γ-rays associated with the decay of the isomer state in ¹⁷⁷Lu (T _1/2 = 160.44 days) are performed using a γ spectrometer that incorporates four different types of semiconductor detectors. Detailed analysis of the balance of intensities of the excited levels in ¹⁷⁷Lu and ¹⁷⁷Hf confirms the consistency of the obtained data. The intensities of the γ- and β—decay branches of the isomer and the internal conversion coefficients of the K-forbidden transitions are determined.     

On electron screening effects in the low-energy 3He(d,p)4He data

We have calculated the screening effects of the two electrons in the atomic ³He gas target on the low-energy³He(d, p)⁴He data. The nuclear degrees of freedom have been described within the microscopic multi-channel Resonating Group Method, while the two electrons have been treated in Born-Oppenheimer approximation deriving the exact screening potential within the Path Integral Monte Carlo method. Our model underestimates the observed screening effects implying the need to consider the coupling of nuclear and electronic degrees of freedom.     

Effects of electron screening on the 3He(d,p)4He low-energy cross sections

The reaction ³He(d, p)⁴He has been investigated for E_CM = 5.9−41.6 keV with the use of D projectiles and ³He atomic gas target nuclides as well as with ³He projectiles and D₂ molecular gas target nuclides. These studies show for the first time the effects of electron screening on low-energy fusion cross sections, i.e. a nearly exponential enhancement of the cross sections compared to the case of bare nuclei. The enhancement is about a factor 2 smaller for the case d(³He, p)⁴He due to the molecular nature of the D₂ target nuclides.     

Spin-dependent low-energy 4He+ ion scattering from nonmagnetic surfaces

We investigated electron-spin-polarized (4)He(+) ion scattering on various nonmagnetic surfaces at kinetic energies below 2 keV. It was observed that the scattered He(+) ion yield depends on the He(+) ion spin. We interpret this spin-dependent scattering in terms of the spin-orbit coupling that acts transiently on the He(+)1s electron spin in the He(+)-target binary collision. This interpretation qualitatively explains the relationship between the spin-dependent scattering and the scattering geometry, incident velocity, and magnetic field arrangement. This is the first study to report spin-orbit coupling caused by projectile electron spin in ion scattering.     

Quest for the 10He nucleus

The spectrum of ¹⁰He was studied by means of the ³H(⁸He, p)¹⁰He reaction at a laboratory energy of 25 MeV/A and small center-of-mass angles. Missing mass spectrum of ¹⁰He was derived from the obtained p-⁸He coincidence. A resolution of 0.7 MeV was achieved in this spectrum for the measured ¹⁰He energy. Most likely, a well isolated group of 10 events detected between 2 and 5 MeV and showing a maximum at about 3 MeV in the spectrum of the present work exhibits the ¹⁰He g.s. resonance.     

Pressure dependence of the excitation spectrum of He II

We have obtained the pressure dependence of the excitation energy spectrum of He II by postulating that its hard-core length is pressure dependent.     

Multichannel features of the continuous spectrum of 6He

It is shown that the continuous spectrum of the ⁶He nucleus immediately above the threshold for its breakup into an alpha particle and two neutrons has some features that are not peculiar to the continuous spectrum of binary systems. This spectrum has an infinite degeneracy multiplicity; hence, there exist an infinite number of decay channels even if we fix the angular momentum and the parity of a channel. In states characterized by a fixed value of the grand orbital, the potential energy of the ⁶He nucleus decreases with increasing hyperradius in inverse proportion to its cube. This circumstance is reflected in the behavior of the S-matrix elements for 3 → 3 scattering at low above-threshold energies. Because of the effect of the Pauli exclusion principle, the grand orbital generally ceases to be an appropriate quantum number for classifying decay channels, and the resulting conventional situation requires invoking superpositions of states corresponding to different values of the grand orbital. Within the method of three-cluster hyperharmonics and the approximation of an asymptotic potential, we calculate the eigenphases of the scattering matrix and reveal regularities in the behavior of these phases as functions of energy.     

Ab initio interatomic potentials for low-energy He ion/atom scattering

Ab initio (density functional theory) binary interatomic potentials have been calculated for low-energy He projectile interactions with target atoms having atomic numbers (Z ₂) from 6 to 54 (C to Xe). The calculated potentials cover the energy range that is typical for low-energy ion He ion/atom-scattering spectroscopy (≤2–7 keV, depending on Z ₂). For constant R, the screening function exhibits Z ₂ oscillations that are indicative of the electronic stabilities of the corresponding quasi-molecules; screening function minima are observed for the quasi-molecules that are isoelectronic with the noble gases. The He–Z ₂ interatomic potentials calculated for target elements lighter than Rb are suitable for use in simulations of low-energy ion-scattering experiments. However, the potentials calculated for target atoms heavier than Kr do not offer any clear benefits over the existing empirical potentials. The solid-state potential shift applicable to scattering in metallic solids has been estimated as typically 0 to+10 eV, using a simple thermodynamic model that exploits the similarities between the valence states of an He–Z ₂ quasi-molecule and the corresponding united atom.