Polarized Electron and Photon Physics

该项目涉及研究极化电子或极化光子与手性或手性粒子之间的碰撞。分子和简单的双原子分子。提出的实验解决了关于电子/光子分子散射动力学的物理问题，特别是关于自旋依赖效应和角动量的碰撞分布。它们还将为需要基本电子-分子和光子-分子散射截面知识的应用提供重要信息，包括工业和天体物理等离子体的建模。改进的极化电子源和分析仪也将被开发。后一项工作有望为生物和材料研究以及工业提供新的分析工具。实验还将探索环面效应。光，即同时具有轨道角动量和自旋角动量的光，使手性分子电离。这些实验的影响将超出原子、分子和光学科学的直接领域。理解手性，还是手性？分子在天体生物学、药理学和基础物理学等领域发挥着重要作用。这项工作有望为生物和材料研究以及工业提供新的分析工具。除了其更广泛的科学意义，这项工作将有一个重要的教育组成部分。该项目将教育研究生、本科生和高中生，并招募代表性不足的群体成员参与科学。手性分子实验及其与天体生物学问题的联系，将成为定期向高中和民间团体进行讲座的绝佳话题，并有助于向广大外行观众展示基础物理学的美妙之处。

This project involves the study of collisions between polarized electrons or polarized photons with chiral, or ?handed? molecules and simple diatomic molecules. The proposed experiments address physics questions about the dynamics of electron/photon-molecule scattering, particularly with regard to spin-dependent effects and the collisional distribution of angular momentum. They would also provide important information for applications requiring knowledge of basic electron-molecule and photon-molecule scattering cross sections, including the modeling of industrial and astrophysical plasmas. Improved sources and analyzers of polarized electrons will also be developed. This latter work holds the promise of providing new analytical tools for biological and materials research, and for industry. Experiments will also explore effects when ?toroidal? light, i.e. light with both orbital and spin angular momentum, ionizes chiral molecules.These experiments will have an impact beyond the immediate community of atomic, molecular, and optical science. Understanding of chiral, or ?handed? molecules play an important role in areas as diverse as astrobiology, pharmacology, and basic physics. This work holds the promise of providing new analytical tools for biological and materials research, and for industry. In addition to its broader scientific implications, this work will have a significant educational component. The project will educate graduate, undergraduate and high school students as well as recruit members of under-represented groups to science. The experiments with chiral molecules and their connection to astrobiological issues make an excellent topic for talks that will be given regularly to high school and civic groups, and serve to illustrate the beauty of basic physics to a large lay audience.