ELECTROMAGNETIC-FIELD-ENHANCED DESORPTION OF ATOMS

We present a description of how the collective electronic excitation in a small metal particle leads to a large field enhancement in the surface region which induces electronic transitions resulting eventually in the desorption of atoms. Our results for the frequency and radial dependence of the desorption yield are in good agreement with recent experimental findings for sodium particles, and make it possible to extract information about the effective number of desorption sites for a small particle. © 1990 The American Physical Society.