Open AccessOn the nature of the ionisation of a molecule by an α-particle
Author(s) -
Richard Kleeman
Publication year - 1910
Publication title -
proceedings of the royal society of london. series a, containing papers of a mathematical and physical character
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2053-9150
pISSN - 0950-1207
DOI - 10.1098/rspa.1910.0006
Subject(s) - ionization , atomic physics , kinetic energy , electron , particle (ecology) , ionizing radiation , momentum (technical analysis) , physics , atom (system on chip) , atoms in molecules , energy (signal processing) , molecule , classical mechanics , nuclear physics , quantum mechanics , ion , irradiation , oceanography , finance , computer science , economics , embedded system , geology
No experiments have hitherto been made to determine the source of the energy which appears when ionisation takes place. The energy involved may be accounted for in two ways (1), it may be derived from the potential energy of the atom which is set free by a “trigger” action of the ionising agent, or (2), it may be energy directly absorbed from the ionising agent which is transformed into the energy of the ionised molecule. If the energy of the ionising agent is kinetic energy, which is the case with theα -particle, an experiment can be made to decide whether any of the energy of ionisation can be accounted for on the second hypothesis. If anα -particle is losing energy during its motion, its loss of the second hypothesis. If anα -particle is losing energy during its motion, its loss of momentum must be equal to the gain of momentum of the electrons ejected from molecules byα -particles should have on the whole a motion in the same direction as theα -particles. These considerations led the writer to undertake some experiments on the direction of motion of electrons when ionisation is produced byα -particles.