Photoionization studies on laser cooled and trapped atoms

• Grant number: 10/01545-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research
• Start date: April 11, 2010
• End date: May 10, 2010
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Physics - Atomic and Molecular Physics
• Principal Investigator: Reinaldo Luiz Cavasso Filho
• Grantee: Reinaldo Luiz Cavasso Filho
• Host Investigator: Arnaldo Naves de Brito
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Naturais e Humanas (CCNH). Universidade Federal do ABC (UFABC). Ministério da Educação (Brasil). Santo André , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Berlin Electron Storage Ring Society for Synchrotron Radiation (BESSY), Germany

Abstract

The purpose of this project is to support the realization of the BESSY Proposal 2010_1_91253 - "Angular distribution of photo-electrons of cooled and trapped Cesium after core ionization: the ultimate probe for relativistic effects".Few years ago, we developed at the Brazilian Synchrotron Laboratory (LNLS) a pioneering technique that combines laser cooling and trapping, Synchrotron photo-ionization and time of flight spectrometry. With this technique it is possible to analyze the photo-electron angular distribution (partial cross section) in the events of photoionization of atoms interacting with Synchrotron radiation. Using laser cooled and trapped Cesium atoms we observed some effects only theoretically predicted so far. About one year ago, we developed a new experimental station in collaboration with the German laboratory BESSY, with CNPq support and German funding. The station built at BESSY is dedicated to studies of partial cross section through the technique developed at LNLS. The Berlin preliminary results are very satisfactory, combining the high sensitivity of the new technique with the high resolution and high flux of the photons provided by the BESSY electron ring. In this research mission, for which we ask financial support, we plan to use photons with higher energies in order to analyze the angular distribution after core ionization and not only envents related to ionization of valence electrons. (AU)