Quantum quasiresonances in grazing incident angle atom-surface collisions

TL;DR

This paper investigates quantum quasiresonances in atom-surface collisions at grazing angles, revealing how energy transfer efficiency and diffraction patterns are influenced by quantum effects and phase-space dynamics.

Contribution

It introduces the concept of quantum quasiresonances in grazing atom-surface collisions and demonstrates classical-quantum correspondence in the quasiresonance region.

Findings

Large non-specular diffraction peaks observed

Quantum and classical phase-space analyses agree on quasiresonance span

Quantum effects dominate energy transfer efficiency

Abstract

The momentum transfer between the normal components to an index direction in the collision of an atom with a periodic surface is investigated. For fast atoms with grazing angle of incidence there is an interval of azimuthal angles around the index direction for which the energy transfer can be very efficient. This effect is reflected in quantum diffraction patterns with large non-specular peaks, associated with the parallel to the surface and normal to the index direction momentum component, and can be described in terms of quasiresonance. Although the classical dynamics does not reproduce the precise quantum diffraction probabilities, indicating the quantum nature of this effect, classical and quantum computations show that the span of the quasiresonance region coincides in both dynamics and can be classically estimated from the phase-space analysis.