Excitation of autoionizing levels in the collision of electrons with alkali-metal atoms

Abstract

The method suggested in 1965 by Crothers and McCarroll for the study of electron impact excitation of neutral atoms has been applied to the excitation of autoionizing levels in alkali-metal atoms. The autoionizing levels have been assumed to arise from the excitation of an inner-shell electron to the valence shell and no account has been taken of the electron-electron couplings in the target atoms. The results are compared with the earlier work of Tiwary and Rai (1975) who used the method of Vainshtein et al. (1965).