Ion and photon beam interactions with atoms and materials: Basic science and analytical applications, including Martian geochemical exploration

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The foundations of our work lie in physics, where we study processes involving the innermost electrons that orbit the atom. One such process is the ejection of these electrons by swift heavy projectiles such as protons from a particle accelerator, and another is the emission of characteristic X-rays during the subsequent relaxation of the excited atom. Our experiments are interpreted through highly refined computer analysis of the energy distributions of these X-rays.