Interpretation of a relativistic(e,2e)experiment in coplanar asymmetric geometry

Abstract

Triply differential cross sections obtained in relativistic $(e,2e)$ experiments on inner shell states in coplanar asymmetric geometries show a number of characteristic features, most notably a secondary maximum for emission of both electrons into the same quadrant. Referring to a recent experiment [K.-H. Besch, M. Sauter, and W. Nakel, J. Phys. B 30, L73 (1997)] an interpretation of these findings in terms of destructive interference of the contributions to the S matrix describing exchange of one longitudinal photon with those representing single transverse photon exchange is proposed. An additional feature of the triply differential cross section for backward emission of the slow electron observed in this experiment is attributed to a double-scattering mechanism.