Positron-electron pairs emitted from metallic and oxide surfaces

Abstract

If a positron impacts onto a surface, it may lead to the emission of a positron-electron pair. We have commissioned a laboratory-based positron source and performed a systematic study on a variety of solid surfaces. In a symmetric emission geometry we can explore the fact that positrons and electrons are distinguishable particles. Following fundamental symmetry arguments we have to expect that the available energy is shared unequally among positrons and electrons. Experimentally we observe such a behavior for all materials studied. We find a universal feature for all materials in the sense that, on average, the positron carries a larger fraction of the available energy. A scattering model accounts qualitatively for the observed energy sharing in positron-electron pair emission. A comparison of the intensity levels from the different materials reveals a monotonic relation between the singles and pair coincidence count rates.