Extreme Correlation and Repulsive Interactions in Highly Excited Atomic Alkali Anions

Journal Article · 25 September 2018 · Physical Review Letters

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.121.133401 · OSTI ID:1541366

Eiles, Matthew T. ^[1]; Greene, Chris H. ^[2]

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1. Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN (United States). Dept. of Physics and Astronomy; DOE/OSTI
2. Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN (United States). Dept. of Physics and Astronomy. Purdue Quantum Center

At high energies, single-photon photodetachment of alkali negative ions populates final states where both the ejected electron and the residual valence electron possess high angular momenta. The photodetached electron interacts strongly with the anisotropic core, and thus the partial cross sections for these channels display non-Wigner threshold behavior reflecting these large, and occasionally repulsive, interactions. Our fully quantum-mechanical theoretical study enables a deeper interpretation of these partial cross sections. Comparisons of the behavior in different channels and between different atomic species—sodium, potassium, and cesium—show the critical role of near degeneracies in the energy spectrum and demonstrate that much of the behavior of the partial photodetachment cross sections stems from the permanent, rather than induced, electric dipole moments of these nearly degenerate channels. This provides a concrete example of a system where negative dispersion forces play a decisive role.

• Research Organization: Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE; USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
• Grant/Contract Number: SC0010545
• OSTI ID: 1541366
• Journal Information: Physical Review Letters, Journal Name: Physical Review Letters Journal Issue: 13 Vol. 121; ISSN 0031-9007
• Publisher: American Physical Society (APS)Copyright Statement
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English