Abstract
Probabilities and cross sections for charge transfer by impact on atomic hydrogen (H), deuterium (D), and tritium (T) at low collision energies are calculated. The results are obtained using an ab initio theory, which solves the time-dependent Schrödinger equation. For the H target, excellent agreement is achieved between the present and previous results. Differences by orders of magnitude are observed between the cross sections for H, D, and T. A method is introduced to separate the contributions of charge-transfer mechanisms due to radial and rotational coupling. The large differences observed for H, D, and T are attributed to isotope effects in the rotational coupling mechanism.
- Received 14 May 2007
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.99.103201
©2007 American Physical Society