Atom capture and loss in ion molecule collisions

Progress is reported in measuring the energy and angular distribution of protons emerging with velocity close to the beam velocity from the target region when Ar+ beams collide with a CH4 target and ArH+ beams collide with a He target at asymptotically high speeds. The protons result from the transfer of a target constituent to the projectile (atom capture) or from the dissociation of the projectile molecule in the collision (atom loss). For atom capture processes the Thomas peak is clearly observed. 10 refs., 3 figs