Magnetic field effect in photodetachment from negative ion in electric field near metal surface

Based on the closed-orbit theory, the magnetic field effect in the photodetachment of negative ion in the electric field near a metal surface is studied for the first time. The results show that the magnetic field can produce a significant effect on the photodetachment of negative ion near a metal surface. Besides the closed orbits previously found by Du et al. for the H− in the electric field near a metal surface (J. Phys. B 43 035002 (2010)), some additional closed orbits are produced due to the effect of magnetic field. For a given ion—surface distance and an electric field strength, the cross section depends sensitively on the magnetic field strength. As the magnetic field strength is very small, its influence can be neglected. With the increase of the magnetic field strength, the number of the closed orbits increases greatly and the oscillation in the cross section becomes much more complex. Therefore we can control the photodetachment cross section of the negative ion by changing the magnetic field strength. We hope that our results may guide future experimental studies for the photodetachment process of negative ion in the presence of external fields and surfaces. (atomic and molecular physics)