Properties of cold ions produced by synchrotron radiation and by charged particle impact

Argon recoil ions produced by beams of 0.8 MeV/u Cl/sup 5 +/ have been detected by time-of-flight (TOF) techniques in coincidence with the loss of from one to five projectile electrons. Recoil-ion energies have been determined to be more than an order of magnitude higher than those of highly-charged ions produced by unmonochromatized synchrotron radiation. Charge-state distributions, however, show similarities, suggesting that loss of projectile electrons corresponds, in some cases, to inner-shell target ionization producing vacancy cascades. In an essential improvement to the usual multinomial description of ionization in the independent-electron-ejection model, we find the inclusion of Auger vacancy cascades significantly alters the description of the recoil ion spectra corresponding to projectile-electron loss. These conclusions are consistent with impact parameters inferred from determinations of mean recoil energy. 11 refs., 5 figs.