A b s t r a c tThis short review includes classical, semiclassica] and quantal methods. Information about charge state population as a function of scattering angle and about the distribution of ionized electrons in energy and solid angle can be extracted for projectile energies in the range of 50 keV/amu up to 1 GeV/amu.
I n t r o d u c t i o nThe subject of this review concerns many electron processes in heavy ion collisions, mainly capture and multiple ionization (MI). We discuss the following problem: a bare nucleus of charge i impinges on a neutral target atom with N electrons and produces a q-fold charged recoil ion by capturing m and ionizing n electrons:In the early work only the recoil ions were detected [2] (recoil ion production cross sections) while a coincidence count of projectile ions with known charge state with the recoils yields charge state correlated cross sections [3]. Most theories dealing with this problem do not rely on a quantum mechanical (QM) description, but on semiclassicat or classical approximations. This works well for the prediction of the population of charge states on projectile and target after the collision and for information differential in projectile (and target) scattering angle and for electron emission spectra. Detailed QM information, such as quasiresonant K-K shell exchange can be obtained in density functional theory (DFT). The problem of N electrons and the two colliding nuclei is usually reduced to an explicitly time dependent (TD) N -b o d y problem with a fixed nuclear trajectory. This elimination of two degrees of freedom is convenient as long as one is interested in total charge state production cross sections. For information differential in the projectile or target scattering angle it poses a problem insofar as the information about deflection is contained in the phase of the nuclear scattering wave function. A further common simplification is to reduce the remaining explicitly TD many body problem to an independent particle model (IPM), such as e.g. the TD ttartree-Fock approximation or simplifications thereof. For many purposes it is sufficient to further simplify and give up on shell structure. At this level the model becomes statistical in nature, is based on the h = 0 limit and is related either to the TD Thomas-Fermi or the Vtasov model. To regain QM information it is possible to use the mean field potential from such a calculation in an effective single-particle TD SehrSdinger equation (SE), which amounts to a DFT approach.Three other approaches that do not rely on this 'standard' sequence of approximation have been applied: (i) an IPM based on perturbative expansions from stationary scattering theory, (ii) classical N+2-body calculations, and (iii) purely statistical models (energy deposition model) which do not attempt to follow the detailed evolution of the collision [1]. This review does not contain material about heavy ion collisions at low energies, where highly charged recoil ions are predominantly produced by capture.
Theory 2.I S1ationary scatte...