The Unitary Semiclassical Theory of Coulomb Excitation of Atoms

Abstract

The processes of Coulomb excitation and ionization of atoms by fast charged particles moving along classical trajectories are studied. The target electrons are described by the Dirac equation while the field of the incident particle is described by the Lienard-Wiechert potential. The theory is formulated in the form most convenient for investigating various characteristics of semiclassical atomic collisions. The theory of sudden perturbations, which is valid at high enough velocities for a high projectile charge, is employed to obtain probabilities and cross sections of the Coulomb excitation and ionization of hydrogenic atoms by fast multiply charged ions.