Resonantly enhanced interatomic Coulombic electron capture in a system of three atoms

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that interatomic Coulombic electron capture can be significantly amplified in a three-atom system when the free-bound transition energy matches a dipole-allowed excitation in a neighboring atom, depending on energy and geometry.

Contribution

It introduces the concept of resonant enhancement of interatomic electron capture via a third atom, highlighting the role of energy resonance and spatial configuration.

Findings

Resonant enhancement occurs when transition energies align.

The process depends on incident electron energy.

Spatial geometry influences the enhancement effect.

Abstract

In interatomic Coulombic electron capture, the capture of a free electron at an atomic center is accompanied by the radiationless transfer of the excess energy to a neighboring atom of different species, leading to ionization of the latter. We show that this interatomic process can be strongly enhanced by the presence of an additional third atom, provided the energy of the free-bound capture transition in the first atom is resonant to a dipole-allowed excitation energy in this assisting atom. The relation of the resonantly enhanced three-center electron capture with other processes is discussed, and its dependencies on the incident electron energy and the spatial geometry of the triatomic system are illustrated.