Cross sections for stripping and electron attachment of hydrogen atoms in the metastable state and ground state in collision with hydrogen iodide

Abstract

Collisions of ground state (1S) and metastable (2S) H atoms in an HI target have been studied in the energy range 0.5–3.0 keV. The total cross section for collisional destruction of H(2S) in HI is found to be about 3×10 −15 cm 2 in this energy range. For an acceptance half-angle of 10 mrad, the electron attachment and stripping cross sections of both H(1S) and H(2S) have been measured. The ratio of the electron stripping cross section for H(2S) relative to H(1S) is found to be large at low energy. Thus HI could serve as a selective charge-exchange medium for the production of polarized protons in sources of the Lamb-shift type.