| Abstract: |
Superelastic scattering of polarized electrons from laser-excited polarized chromium atoms (47Po4 {rarr} 47S3 transition, energy gain 2.92 eV) has been measured for total collision energies of 6.8 and 13.6 eV (0.5 and 1.0 Ryd) and scattering angles ranging from 10° to 140°. The orientation parameter L{perp} is determined both averaged over spin states, and separately for the sextet and octet total spin channels. The octet-to-sextet cross section ratio r is also determined. The chromium atom has six unpaired electrons with the configuration 3d5(6S5/2)4l (l = 0, 1) for the states under investigation. The scattering data show strong orbital orientation and spin effects, which we attribute to the interaction between the continuum electron and the outermost 4l target electron. |
