Lattice Ion-Trap Confinement for Deuterons and Protons: Possible Interaction in Condensed Matter

Abstract

The lattice confinement effect on the dynamics of protons and deuterons embedded within metals such as Pd or Ni is studied. The work is based on the assumption that the H isotope concentration, as an atomic fraction, is close to one. The study takes advantage of the analogy between the lattice space around tetrahedral sites and the radio-frequency trap for ions, created when coherent oscillations of the metal atom electrons close to the Fermi level take place and produce a dipole signal. The classical description of the system is developed through the numerical solution ofmotion equations written in the trap coordinate system. The model for studying the particle trajectories in a Cartesian plane is a two-dimensional analysis. The results show that a collision phenomenon exists between H isotopes confined in the lattice and that the particle trajectories can be very close to the host metal atoms.