Inelastic energy loss of low energy proton colliding with cryogenic crystals of Ar, Kr and Xe

Abstract

For a collision energy of 500 eV, the energy spectra of protons scattered from thick cryogenic crystals of Ar, Kr and Xe have been measured, and analyzed by using a simple statistical model. The conduction band width has been estimated as 3.2, 2.4 and 1.7 eV, for Ar, Kr and Xe, respectively. A large probability of electronic excitation was observed, and it has been estimated as 0.4, 0.8 and 0.9 for Ar, Kr and Xe, respectively. In the previous study [Surf. Sci. 513 (2002) 71], a large neutralization probability could be interpreted in terms of delocalization of the hole, which was transferred from the proton to the valence band. Similarly, the enhancement of electronic excitation probability can be interpreted in terms of the dissipation of excited electron through the conduction band. Moreover, a potential usefulness of ion energy loss spectroscopy for the electronic band structural analysis has been confirmed.