Nonperturbative, quantum-mechanical approach to ion collisions from molecular targets

Abstract

A quantum-mechanical approach to ion-molecule collisions is presented. It involves a separation of molecular geometry and collision dynamics and enables the use of the basis generator method developed for ion-atom collisions with relatively minor modifications. As a first application, we consider the $p{\text{-H}}_{2}\text{O}$ collision system in the impact energy range of 20--5000 keV, and we report total cross sections for net electron transfer and ionization. They are in remarkably good agreement with experimental data.