Cross sections for short pulse single and double ionization of helium

In a previous publication, procedures were proposed for unambiguously extracting amplitudes for single and double ionization from a time-dependent wavepacket by effectively propagating for an infinite time following a radiation pulse. Here we demonstrate the accuracy and utility of those methods for describing two-photon single and one-photon double ionization of helium. In particular it is shown how narrow features corresponding to autoionizing states are easily resolved with these methods.Comment: 9 pages, 9 figure

Photoabsorption cross sections of two-electron atoms by the coordinate rotation method: Application to H– and several states of He

The coordinate rotation method, recently extended by us to treat photoabsorption processes, is used to obtain photoabsorption cross sections for several two-electron atoms. The calculations are performed using standard configuration–interaction methods; the need for atomic continuum wavefunctions is completely avoided in this approach. We have computed the photodetachment cross section of H– and photoionization cross sections for He in its ground and 2 1S states. In all cases, the computed cross sections agree well with results obtained by numerical integration and with available experimental data

Decoding sequential vs non-sequential two-photon double ionization of helium using nuclear recoil

Above 54.4 eV, two-photon double ionization of helium is dominated by a sequential absorption process, producing characteristic behavior in the single and triple differential cross sections. We show that the signature of this process is visible in the nuclear recoil cross section, integrated over all energy sharings of the ejected electrons, even below the threshold for the sequential process. Since nuclear recoil momentum imaging does not require coincident photoelectron measurement, the predicted images present a viable target for future experiments with new short-pulse VUV and soft X-ray sources.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

A simple method for evaluating low-energy electron-molecule scattering cross sections using discrete basis functions

We present a simple, approximate method for calculating low-energy electron-molecule scattering cross sections using only the results of a basis set diagonalization of the molecular Hamiltonian. The method is based on the approximate conservation of orbital angular momentum in collisions between slow electrons and molecules lacking a permanent dipole moment (low l spoiling). Results are presented for e--H2, and e--N2, in the static-exchange approximation

A relationship between the many-body theory of inelastic scattering and the distorted wave approximation

It is shown that the first-order results of the recent many-body theory of inelastic scattering (see abstr. A25430 of 1971) can be derived by a direct application of the distorted-wave and random phase approximations to the usual expression for the inelastic scattering amplitude. The result is derived both in the second quantized formalism and by the standard application of the distorted-wave approximation coupled with the random phase approximation (RPA). The RPA (or time-dependent Hartree-Fock theory) provides the transition density between the initial and inelastically excited states. Possible generalizations of the procedures are discussed

Cross sections for the elastic scattering of low-energy electrons by molecular fluorine: an approximate theoretical treatment using discrete basis functions

Phaseshifts and total cross sections for the elastic scattering of low-energy (0-13.6 eV) electrons by molecular fluorine are presented. The phaseshifts are obtained by an approximate technique based on the weak asymptotic coupling of orbital angular momenta and are calculated solely from the results of a discrete basis set diagonalization of the molecular Hamiltonian. Correlation and polarization effects are not treated. The elastic cross section is dominated by a Sigma u+ shape resonance at about 2.2 eV in the static-exchange model

Solving the Coulomb scattering problem using the complex scaling method

Based on the work of Nuttall and Cohen [Phys. Rev. {\bf 188} (1969) 1542] and Resigno et al{} [Phys. Rev. A {\bf 55} (1997) 4253] we present a rigorous formalism for solving the scattering problem for long-range interactions without using exact asymptotic boundary conditions. The long-range interaction may contain both Coulomb and short-range potentials. The exterior complex scaling method, applied to a specially constructed inhomogeneous Schr\"odinger equation, transforms the scattering problem into a boundary problem with zero boundary conditions. The local and integral representations for the scattering amplitudes have been derived. The formalism is illustrated with numerical examples.Comment: 3 pages, 3 figure

Multiconfiguration Time-Dependent Hartree-Fock Treatment of Electronic and Nuclear Dynamics in Diatomic Molecules

The multiconfiguration time-dependent Hartree-Fock (MCTDHF) method is formulated for treating the coupled electronic and nuclear dynamics of diatomic molecules without the Born- Oppenheimer approximation. The method treats the full dimensionality of the electronic motion, uses no model interactions, and is in principle capable of an exact nonrelativistic description of diatomics in electromagnetic fields. An expansion of the wave function in terms of configurations of orbitals whose dependence on internuclear distance is only that provided by the underlying prolate spheroidal coordinate system is demonstrated to provide the key simplifications of the working equations that allow their practical solution. Photoionization cross sections are also computed from the MCTDHF wave function in calculations using short pulses.Comment: Submitted to Phys Rev

A many-body treatment of Feshbach theory applied to electron-atom and electron-molecule collisions

The Feshbach projection-operator technique is investigated using second quantization to construct approximate optical potentials with Tamm-Dancoff-approximation and random-phase-approximation descriptions for closed-shell targets. We interpret a recent many-body theory of elastic scattering (due to Schneider, Taylor, and Yaris) as an approximate form of the equations of this work. Possible applications and extensions of the method are also described