Probing the atom : interactions of coupled states, fast beams, and loose electrons / Mark P. Silverman.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Silverman, Mark P., author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Atomic structure.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xix, 226 pages) : illustrations

Place of Publication:

Princeton, New Jersey : Princeton University Press, [2000]

Summary:

The many-faceted efforts to understand the structure and interactions of atoms over the past hundred years have contributed decisively and dramatically to the explosive development of physics. There is hardly a branch of modern physical science that does not in some seminal way rely on the fundamental principles and mathematical and experimental insights that derive from these studies. In particular, the drive to understand the singular features of the hydrogen atom--simultaneously the archetype of all atoms and the least typical atom--spurred many of the twentieth century's advances in physics and chemistry. This book gives an in-depth account of the author's own penetrating experimental and theoretical investigations of the hydrogen atom, while simultaneously providing broad lessons in the application of quantum mechanics to atomic structure and interactions. A pioneer in the combined use of atomic accelerators and radiofrequency spectroscopy for probing the internal structure of the hydrogen atom, Mark Silverman examines the general principles behind this far-reaching experimental approach. Fast-moving protons are directed into gas or foil targets from which they capture electrons to become hydrogen atoms moving uniformly at very high speeds. During their rapid passage through the spectroscopy chamber of the atomic accelerator, these atoms reveal by the light they emit fascinating details of their internal configuration and the interactions that created them. Silverman examines the effects of radiofrequency fields on the hydrogen atom clearly and systematically, explaining the details of these interactions at different levels of complexity and refinement, each level illuminating the physical processes involved from different and complementary perspectives. Readers interested in diverse areas of physics and physical chemistry will appreciate both the theoretical and practical implications of Silverman's studies and the personal style with which he relays them. This is a work of not only an outstanding research physicist, but a fine teacher who understands how curiosity underlies all science.

Contents:

Cover Page

Half-title Page

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication Page

Contents

Preface: In at the Beginnings

Notes

Chapter 1: Energies and Spectral Lines

1.1. Anatomy of Hydrogen

1.2. Shapes and Widths

Chapter 2: The Driven Two-Level Atom

2.1. Dynamics of a Two-Level Atom

2.2. Rotating-Wave Approximation

2.3. Oscillating-Field Theory

2.4. Occupation Probabilities

Chapter 3: The Driven Multilevel Atom

3.1. Statistical Uncertainties and the Density Matrix

3.2. Time Evolution of the Density Matrix

3.3. Generalized Resonant Field Theory

3.4. Two-State Transitions

3.5. Three-State Transitions

3.6. Four-State Transitions

3.7. Numerical Solution of the N-State System

3.8. Coupling Elements V

Appendix: Eigenvalues and Eigenvectors of Three- and Four-State Systems

Chapter 4: Multiple-Quantum Transitions

4.1. The Quantized Radiofrequency Field

4.2. Remarks on Dipole Coupling

4.3. The Two-Level Atom (Again)

4.4. Coherent Field States

4.5. Triple-Quantum Transitions

4.6. Crossings and Anticrossings

4.7. Resolvent Operator Solution

4.8. One- and Three-Photon Lineshapes

Appendix 4- A: Semiclassical Theory of Multiphoton Transitions

Appendix 4- B: Resolvents, Propagators, and Green's Functions

Chapter 5: The Decay of Coupled States

5.1. Perspectives on Radiation Damping

5.2. The Quantized Optical Field

5.3. State Amplitudes and Radiative Decay Rates

5.4. Emission Lineshapes

Chapter 6: Optical Detection Theory

6.1. The Process of Detection

6.2. The Optical Detection Function

6.3. The Efficiency Matrix

6.4. The Optical Signal

Chapter 7: State Selection and Lineshape Resolution

7.1. The Use of Sequential Fields

7.2. Parallel Oscillating Fields.

7.3. Nonparallel Oscillating Fields

Chapter 8: Elements of Experimental Design and Application

8.1. General Description

8.2. Ion Production and Extraction

8.3. Ion Acceleration and Focusing

8.4. Excited Atom Production

8.5. The Radiofrequency System

8.6. Optical Detection

8.7. Spectroscopy

8.8. Electron Capture and Atom Formation

Appendix 8- A: The Paraxial Ray Equation for Ions

Appendix 8- B: Effect of Standing Waves on a Resonance Lineshape

Appendix 8- C: Phenomenological Model of the RF Chamber

Index.

Notes:

Description based on print version record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780691228266

0691228264

OCLC:

1243535112