Recent results on fast intermediate velocity electron production induced by 19+ 45 A MeV 58Ni highly charged ions on thin solid targets

Abstract

In order to study the emission of energetic electrons induced by the impact of swift heavy ions on thin solid targets, we carried out a series of experiments at the superconducting cyclotron of the Catania Laboratori Nazionali del Sud. We report results on a recent experiment where electron–electron coincidences were measured in a forward ring by bombarding a thin carbon target of 7.4 μg/cm2 with 19+ 45 AMeV 58Ni beam. The velocity1–velocity2 bidimensional plot is dominated by events in which the two detected electrons have a velocity close to the beam velocity 9.03 cm/ns (convoy electrons). The remaining small fraction of coincidences has still a convoy electron and a second electron having either a velocity almost twice the beam velocity 16.5 cm/ns (binary encounter, BE electrons) or a velocity of about 12.7 cm/ns intermediate between BE and convoy velocities (IV electrons). We interprete this last intermediate component as due to in-flight de-excitation of highly excited n+58Ni ions by Auger electrons. Although less distinct, we observe also an intense peak close to the convoy velocity peak, centered at ≈9.7 cm/ns, corresponding to electrons emitted with an energy of only about ≈170 eV in the projectile rest frame of reference.