Abstract
In this article I briefly survey developments in the emerging subjects of positron and positronium collisions and anti — hydrogen production. My aim is not to give a comprehensive review but rather to give a “flavour” of what is happening. For more detailed reviews the reader is directed to references 1, 2, 33 and 56, although a substantive part of the material presented here has not previously been reviewed.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
H.R.J. Walters, A.A. Kernoghan and M.T. McAlinden, Overview of the present theoretical status of positron — atom collisions, AIP Conf. Proc. 360:397 (1995).
H.R.J. Walters, A.A. Kernoghan, M.T. McAlinden and C.P. Campbell, Positron collisions with atoms, in: Photon and Electron Collisions with Atoms and Molecules, P.G. Burke and C.J. Joachain, eds, Plenum, New York (1997).
M.T. McAlinden, A.A. Kernoghan and H.R.J. Walters, Cross — channel coupling in positron — atom scattering, Hyperfine Interactions 89:161 (1994).
A.A. Kernoghan, M.T. McAlinden and H.R.J. Walters, Scattering of low energy positrons by lithium, J. Phys. B 27:L625 (1994).
A.A. Kernoghan, M.T. McAlinden and H.R.J. Walters, An 18 — state calculation of positron — hydrogen scattering, J. Phys. B 28:1079 (1995).
M.T. McAlinden, A.A. Kernoghan and H.R.J. Walters, Positron scattering by potassium, J. Phys. B 29:555 (1996).
A.A. Kernoghan, D.J.R. Robinson, M.T. McAlinden and H.R.J. Walters, Positron scattering by atomic hydrogen, J. Phys.B 29:2089 (1996).
A.A. Kernoghan, M.T. McAlinden and H.R.J. Walters, Positron scattering by rubidium and caesium, J. Phys. B 29:3971 (1996).
M.T. McAlinden, A.A. Kernoghan and H.R.J. Walters, Positron scattering by lithium, J. Phys. B 30:1543 (1997).
C.P. Campbell, M.T. McAlinden, A.A. Kernoghan and H.R.J. Walters, Positron collisions with one — and two — electron atoms, Nuclear Instruments and Methods B 143:41 (1998).
P.G. Burke and W.D. Robb, The R — Matrix Theory of Atomic Processes, Adv. Atom. Mol. Phys. 11:143 (1975).
A.T. Stelbovics, L2 discretisation of the Coulomb problem in an orthonormal Laguerre function basis, J. Phys. B 22:L159 (1989).
I. Bray and A.T. Stelbovics, Explicit demonstration of the convergence of the close-coupling method for a Coulomb three — body problem, Phys. Rev. Lett. 69:53 (1992).
S. Zhou, H. Li, W.E. Kauppila, C.K. Kwan and T.S. Stein, Measurements of total and positronium formation cross sections for positrons and electrons scattered by hydrogen atoms and molecules, Phys. Rev. A 55:361 (1997).
G.O. Jones, M. Charlton, J. Slevin, G. Laricchia, Á. Kövér, M.R. Poulsen and S. Nic Chormaic, Positron impact ionization of atomic hydrogen, J. Phys. B 26:L483 (1993).
A.A. Kernoghan, Positron Scattering by Atomic Hydrogen and the Alkali Metals, PhD Thesis, The Queen’s University of Belfast, (1996).
A. Kövér and G. Laricchia, Triply differential study of positron impact ionization of H2, Phys. Rev. Lett. 80:5309 (1998).
M. Brauner and J.S. Briggs, Structures in differential cross sections for positron impact ionization of hydrogen, J. Phys. B 24:2227 (1991).
E.P. Curran and H.R.J. Walters, Triple differential cross sections for electron impact ionization of atomic hydrogen — a coupled pseudostate calculation, J. Phys. B 20:337 (1987).
E.P. Curran and H.R.J. Walters, Electron impact ionization of atomic hydrogen in asymmetric geometry — non-coplanar triple, double and single differential cross sections, J. Phys. B 20:1105 (1987).
I. Bray and D.V. Fursa, Calculation of ionization within the close — coupling formalism, Phys. Rev. A 54:2991 (1996).
V. Kara, K. Paludan, J. Moxom, P. Ashley and G. Laricchia, Single and double ionisation of Neon, Krypton and Xenon by positron impact, J. Phys. B 30:3933 (1997).
T. Falke, W. Raith and M. Weber, Obsevation of structure in differential transfer ionization of argon atoms by positrons, Phys. Rev. Lett. 75:3418 (1995).
H. Bluhme, H. Knudsen, J.P. Merrison and M.R. Poulsen, Strong suppression of the positronium channel in double ionization of noble gases by positron impact, Phys. Rev. Lett. 81:73 (1998).
C.P. Campbell, M.T. McAlinden and H.R.J. Walters, Positron collisions with two-electron atoms: He, Mg, Zn, Ca, Abstracts of the 6th European Conference on Atomic and Molecular Physics ( Siena, Italy, 1998 ), C. Biancalana, P. Bicchi and E. Mariotti, eds, vol 22D p4–33.
N. Zafar, G. Laricchia, M. Charlton and A. Garner, Positronium — argon scattering, Phys. Rev. Lett. 76:1595 (1996).
A.J. Garner, G. Laricchia and A. Özen, Ps beam production and scattering from gaseous targets, J. Phys. B 29:5961 (1996).
C.P. Campbell, M.T. McAlinden, F.G.R.S. MacDonald and H.R.J. Walters, Scattering of positronium by atomic hydrogen, Phys. Rev. Lett. 80:5097 (1998).
R.J. Drachman and S.K. Houston, Positronium — hydrogen elastic scattering, Phys. Rev. A 12:885 (1975).
R.J. Drachman, Autodissociating Rydberg states of positronium hydride, Phys. Rev. A 19:1900 (1979).
M.T. McAlinden, F.G.R.S. MacDonald and H.R.J. Walters, Positronium — atom scattering, Can. J. Phys. 74:434 (1996).
J. Blackwood, C.P. Campbell, M.T. McAlinden and H.R.J. Walters, Positronium scattering by helium, to be published.
A.J. Garner, A. Özen and G. Laricchia, Positronium beam scattering from atoms and molecules, Nuclear Instruments and Methods B143:155 (1998).
J.A. Wheeler, Polyelectrons, Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 48:219 (1946).
E.A. Hylleraas and A. Ore, Binding energy of the positronium molecule, Phys. Rev. 71:493 (1947).
A.M. Frolov and V.H. Smith Jr, One — photon annihilation in the Ps― ion and the angular (e―, e―) correlation in two — electron ions, Phys. Rev. A 49:3580 (1994).
A.M. Frolov and V.H. Smith Jr, Positronium hydrides and the Ps2 molecule: bound-state properties, positron annihilation rates, and hyperfine structure, Phys. Rev. A 55:2662 (1997).
K. Varga, J. Usukura and V. Suzuki, Second bound state of the positronium molecule and biexcitons, Phys. Rev. Lett. 80:1876 (1998).
D.M. Schrader, Bound states of positrons with atoms and molecules: theory, Nuclear Instruments and Methods 143:209 (1998).
K. Strasburger and H. Chojnacki, Quantum chemical study of simple positronic systems using explicitly correlated Gaussian functions — PsH and PsLi+, J. Chem. Phys. 108:3218 (1998).
G.G. Ryzhikh and J. Mitroy, Positronic lithium, an electronically stable Li-e+ ground state, Phys. Rev. Lett. 79:4124 (1997).
K. Varga and Y. Suzuki, Solution of few — body problems with the stochastic variational method I. Central forces with zero orbital momentum, Comp. Phys. Comm. 106:157 (1997).
G.G. Ryzhikh, J. Mitroy and K. Varga, The structure of exotic atoms containing positrons and positronium, J. Phys. B 31:3965 (1998).
G. Ryzhikh and J. Mitroy, A metastable state of positronic helium, J. Phys. B 31:3465 (1998).
A. Ore, The existence of Wheeler — compounds, Phys. Rev. 83:665 (1951).
D.M. Schrader, F.M. Jacobsen, N-P. Frandsen and U. Mikkelsen, Formation of positronium hydride, Phys. Rev. Lett. 69:57 (1992).
P.E. Cade and A. Farazdal, The electronic structure and positron annihilation characteristics of positronium halides [X―; e+] I. Hartree — Fock calculations and stability, J. Chem. Phys. 66:2598 (1977).
D.M. Schrader, T. Yoshida and K. Iguchi, Binding energies of positronium fluoride and positronium bromide by the model potential quantum Monte Carlo method, J. Chem. Phys. 98:7185 (1993).
T. Yoshida, G. Miyako, N. Jiang and D.M. Schrader, Diffusion quantum Monte Carlo calculation of the binding energy of positronium hydroxide, Phys. Rev. A 54:964 (1996).
D.M. Schrader and C.M. Wang, Approximate molecular orbital theory for positrons and positronium atoms bound to molecules, J. Phys. Chem. 80:2507 (1976).
C. Itzykson and J-B. Zuber, Quantum Field Theory, McGraw — Hill, New York, (1985).
K. Iwata, R.G. Greaves, T.J. Murphy, M.D. Tinkle and C.M. Surko, Measurements of positron — annihilation rates on molecules, Phys. Rev. A 51:473 (1995).
G. Laricchia and C. Wilkin, Semiempirical approach to positron annihilation in molecules, Phys. Rev. Lett. 79:2241 (1997).
G. Laricchia and C. Wilkin, On the annihilation of positrons in binary encounters with molecules, Nuclear Instruments and Methods 143:135 (1998).
P. Van Reeth and J.W. Humberston, The energy dependence of the annihilation rate in positron — atom scattering, J. Phys. B 31:L231 (1998).
M. Charlton, J. Eades, D. Horváth, R.J. Hughes and C. Zimmermann, Antihydrogen physics, Phys. Repts. 241:65 (1994).
G. Baur, G. Boero, S. Brauksiepe, A. Buzzo, W. Eyrich, R. Geyer, D. Grzonka, J. Hauffe, K. Kilian, M. Lo Ve tere, M. Macri, M. Moosburger, R. Nellen, W. Oelert, S. Passaggio, A. Pozzo, K. Roehrich, K. Sachs, G. Schepers, T. Sefzick, R.S. Simon, R. Stratmann, F. Stinzing and M. Wolke, Production of antihydrogen, Phys. Lett. B 368:251 (1996).
J.P. Merrison, H. Bluhme, J. Chevallier, B.I. Deutch, P. Hvelplund, L.V. J0rgensen, H. Knudsen, M.R. Poulsen and M. Charlton, Hydrogen formation by proton impact on positronium, Phys. Rev. Lett. 78:2728 (1997).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1999 Springer Science+Business Media New York
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Walters, H.R.J. (1999). Positrons, Positronium, and Anti — Hydrogen. In: Whelan, C.T., Dreizler, R.M., Macek, J.H., Walters, H.R.J. (eds) New Directions in Atomic Physics. Physics of Atoms and Molecules. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-4721-1_8
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-4721-1_8
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
Print ISBN: 978-1-4613-7139-7
Online ISBN: 978-1-4615-4721-1
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive