On the decay of hot charged alkali metal clusters
Abstract
On the basis of the liquid drop model, the decay of charged hot alkali metal clusters is investigated theoretically. Above a critical cluster size ncz the decay is dominated by neutral monomer cluster atom evaporation, whereas below this critical size evaporation of singly charged cluster atoms is dominant, which might be considered as highly asymmetric fission. We apply the Weisskopf evaporation theory, developed in nuclear physics, to calculate the decay rates, and thus the time scales, for neutral and charged cluster fragment emission. The critical cluster sizes are determined by equating the rates for neutral and charged cluster atom emission.
- Publication:
-
Physics Letters A
- Pub Date:
- February 1995
- DOI:
- 10.1016/0375-9601(95)00311-P
- Bibcode:
- 1995PhLA..202...99F