Ab initio computation of Auger decay in heavy metals: zinc about it

Fuente: arXiv
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Auteurs principaux: Ferino-Pérez, Anthuan, Jagau, Thomas-C.
Format: Preprint
Publié: 2024
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author Ferino-Pérez, Anthuan
Jagau, Thomas-C.
author_facet Ferino-Pérez, Anthuan
Jagau, Thomas-C.
contents We report the first coupled-cluster study of Auger decay in heavy metals. The zinc atom is used as a case study due to its relevance to the Auger emission properties of the $^{67}$Ga radionuclide. Coupled-cluster theory combined with complex basis functions is used to describe the transient nature of the core-ionized zinc atom. We also introduce second-order Møller-Plesset perturbation theory as an alternative method for computing partial Auger decay widths. Scalar-relativistic effects are included in our approach for computing Auger electron energies by means of the spin-free exact two-component one-electron Hamiltonian, while spin-orbit coupling is treated by means of perturbation theory. We center our attention on the K-edge Auger decay of zinc dividing the spectrum into three parts (K-LL, K-LM, and K-MM) according to the shells involved in the decay. The computed Auger spectra are in good agreement with experimental results. The most intense peak is found at an Auger electron energy of 7432 eV, which corresponds to a $^1$D$_2$ final state arising from K-L$_2$L$_3$ transitions. Our results highlight the importance of relativistic effects for describing Auger decay in heavier nuclei. Furthermore, the effect of a first solvation shell is studied by modeling of Auger decay in the hexaaqua-zinc (II) complex. We find that K-edge Auger decay is slightly enhanced by the presence of the water molecules as compared to the bare atom.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2402_18730
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Ab initio computation of Auger decay in heavy metals: zinc about it
Ferino-Pérez, Anthuan
Jagau, Thomas-C.
Chemical Physics
We report the first coupled-cluster study of Auger decay in heavy metals. The zinc atom is used as a case study due to its relevance to the Auger emission properties of the $^{67}$Ga radionuclide. Coupled-cluster theory combined with complex basis functions is used to describe the transient nature of the core-ionized zinc atom. We also introduce second-order Møller-Plesset perturbation theory as an alternative method for computing partial Auger decay widths. Scalar-relativistic effects are included in our approach for computing Auger electron energies by means of the spin-free exact two-component one-electron Hamiltonian, while spin-orbit coupling is treated by means of perturbation theory. We center our attention on the K-edge Auger decay of zinc dividing the spectrum into three parts (K-LL, K-LM, and K-MM) according to the shells involved in the decay. The computed Auger spectra are in good agreement with experimental results. The most intense peak is found at an Auger electron energy of 7432 eV, which corresponds to a $^1$D$_2$ final state arising from K-L$_2$L$_3$ transitions. Our results highlight the importance of relativistic effects for describing Auger decay in heavier nuclei. Furthermore, the effect of a first solvation shell is studied by modeling of Auger decay in the hexaaqua-zinc (II) complex. We find that K-edge Auger decay is slightly enhanced by the presence of the water molecules as compared to the bare atom.
title Ab initio computation of Auger decay in heavy metals: zinc about it
topic Chemical Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2402.18730