Dielectronic recombination of lithium-like Ar15+

Dielectronic recombination (DR) of Ar¹⁵⁺(1s ²2s) ions was studied in a single-pass merged-beams experiment at the UNILAC (universal linear accelerator) of GSI. Absolute recombination rates and cross sections were measured for electron-ion center-of-mass energies from 0 to 580 eV. A number of Rydberg states formed by DR with 2s → 2p (Δn=0) and 2s → 3? (Δn=1) core excitations and even individual terms in the 1s ²3?3?′ configuration could be resolved. Theoretical calculations of DR cross sections are in good overall agreement with the data. In the calculations for Δn=0 transitions, effects of electric fields have to be included to reproduce the magnitude of the measured DR rates at the limit of the 2 _{p 1/2}? and 2 _{p 3/2}? Rydberg series. Discrepancies between theory and experiment are observed at the series limits of the (1s ²3?n?′) Rydberg series.     

Observation of trielectronic recombination in Be-like Cl ions

Recombination involving the core excitation of two electrons, which may be termed trielectronic recombination, has been experimentally identified for the first time. Using Cl13+ ions circulating in the TSR heavy-ion storage ring, we have observed surprisingly strong low-energy trielectronic recombination resonances, comparable to the dielectronic process. At higher electron-ion collision energies, trielectronic recombination is suppressed due to the autoionization of the triply excited intermediate state into excited final states. The formation of the intermediate state depends sensitively on configuration mixing, making trielectronic recombination a challenge to atomic-structure calculations.     

Recombination measurements at low energies with Ar16+ and Ar18+ ions in a dense, cold electron target

Recombination of multiply charged ions with electrons at very low relative energies has become a major topic of interest, due to the observation of rates which are enhanced beyond the expectations for radiative recombination. We present results for Ar¹⁶⁺ and Ar¹⁸⁺ ions from systematic measurements along the argon isonuclear sequence using a high density cold electron beam target (n_e = 7 × 10⁹ cm^-3) at the UNILAC of GSI. The transverse and longitudinal temperatures of the electron beam were determined from DR resonance features observed with metastable Ar¹⁶⁺ (2³S) ions. The rate at E_rel = 0 for radiative recombination of completely stripped Ar¹⁸⁺ calculated with electron beam temperatures kT_∥ = 0.002 eV, kT_⊥ = 0.2 eV amounts to α = 10^-9 cm³ s^-1. This is exceeded by nearly a factor of 10 by the rate measured in experiments with Ar¹⁸⁺ ions. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Enhancement of Dielectronic Recombination by External Electromagnetic Fields

The enhancement of the dielectronic recombination rate of lithiumlike Ne⁷⁺ and O⁵⁺ ions by external electromagnetic fields has been measured at the storage ring CRYRING. The energy range covered all 1s ²2pnl dielectronic recombination resonances attached to the 2s→2p core excitation. Electric fields up to 1436 V/cm were applied in the Ne⁷⁺ experiment and the saturation of the enhancement with increasing electric field could clearly be seen. In the O⁵⁺ experiment the enhancement was studied as a function of the Rydberg quantum number n.