Target and Velocity Dependence of Charge Exchange X-Ray Emission at Solar Wind Velocities

Abstract

Laboratory measurements of X-ray emissions following charge exchange (CX) between highly charged ions and neutrals are important to assess their diagnostic utility for the nonequilibrium astrophysical plasma environments, where hot flows meet cold gases. With a high-resolution X-ray quantum microcalorimeter detector, we report the CX-induced X-ray spectra and line ratios in Ne8+ on He and Kr collisions at solar wind velocities of 392, 554, 678, and 876 km s−1, respectively. The experimentally determined line ratios quantify the differences in CX state selectivity and the following X-ray emission between He and Kr at different collision velocities. This suggests that target and velocity dependence should be considered for accurately modeling astrophysical CX plasmas.