Observation of the negative muonium ion in vacuum

The negative muonium ion (M/sup /minus//), which is the bound system of a positive muon and two electrons, has been produced and observed for the first time. Its counterpart H/sup /minus// is well known, and spectroscopy and collision studies with H/sup /minus// have yielded many fruitful results. Noteworthy are recent investigations of the photoionization of a relativistic H/sup /minus// beam. The negative positronium ion has also been formed and observed. The discovery of M/sup /minus// provides us with a new leptonic system for spectroscopy and collision studies, which may reveal interesting physics associated with mass effects. Since M/sup /minus// is a charged particle, it can also be used to produce a beam of exotic atoms with a small phase space. This dissertation is a detailed account of the observation of M/sup /minus//. 93 refs., 54 figs., 18 tabs