Radiative and Auger cascade following [formula omitted] vacancy creation in Fe2＋

Abstract

Radiative and Auger cascade following the 2p shell vacancy creation in the Fe2＋ ion is studied by analysing transitions among energy levels and subconfigurations. Branching ratios of the cascade are analysed and main decay mechanisms are identified for all levels of the Fe3＋2p53d6 configuration. The study shows that ion yield strongly depends on the level the cascade starts from. The cascade produces the Fe4＋ and Fe5＋ ions with the highest population. The ion yields are presented for all levels of the Fe3＋2p53d6 configuration. The time-dependent study for population of the ions demonstrates that it takes approximately 10−16 s for the Fe4＋ ions to appear. The final states of the cascade are reached in ∼10−3 s. Radiative and Auger spectra produced by cascade span the energy region up to ∼780eV.