Emission of Secondary Electrons from Nickel and Molybdenum by Neutral Atoms of Mercury and Potassium

Abstract

WE wish to describe briefly some experiments with high-speed neutral atoms produced by the neutralization of positive ions. A homogeneous beam of neutral atoms of mercury, with varying energy, was produced by a method devised by Oliphant¹. The fast mercury ions which were pulled out of a hot cathode mercury arc were made to pass through a narrow metallic canal, where a large fraction of them collide with its walls almost at grazing incidence and are neutralized but retain their initial speed. The residual positive ions were filtered out of the mixed emergent beam by an electrostatic field applied between two plates placed beyond the canal.