Simultaneous charge polarization and fragmentation of N2 molecules in slow keV collisions with Kr8+ ions -: art. no. 030702

Coulomb fragmentation processes in collisions of Kr8+ ions with nitrogen molecules were studied at projectile energies between 19 and 171 eV/u. At low impact energies (less than or similar to50 eV/u) and small impact parameters, the electron distribution of the fragmenting molecular N-2(q+) ion becomes strongly polarized. This is due to the presence of the slow highly charged projectile during the fragmentation process. Microscopic calculations simultaneously incorporating electron transfer and molecular dissociation give insight into the dynamics of this newly found polarization effect.