Electron capture and excitation processes in collisions of H+ with H in finite-temperature quantum plasmas

Abstract

Electron capture and excitation processes in H+-H collisions imbedded in warm dense quantum plasmas are studied by the two-center atomic orbital close-coupling (TC-AOCC) method in the energy range 1–200 keV. The screened potential which is used to describe the interaction between charged particles incorporates the quantum electron degeneracy, exchange-correlation and finite-temperature gradient correlation effects. The total and state-selective electron capture and excitation cross-sections for this collision system with this potential are calculated in a wide range of plasma densities and temperatures. It is demonstrated that the screening of Coulomb interactions affects the collision dynamics and the magnitude and energy behavior of the excitation and electron capture cross-sections. The results at very low and high temperatures are also compared with those obtained for zero-temperature quantum plasmas and Debye plasmas, respectively.