Quantitative Theory for Electron-Atom Scattering

The aim of this work is to develop a general approach to electron and photon impact ionization. This approach should \begin{enumerate} \item be non-perturbative, \item not be restricted to simple systems, \item be straightforward to systematically improve, \item be computationally efficient, \item treat symmetric problems symmetrically. \end{enumerate} \underline {R operator formalism} The concept of an R-matrix has been extended to a general coordinate hyperspace by the introduction of an R-operator, [1]. We have developed an approach to electron-atom scattering within the context of the R-operator formalism. Results will be presented for the Temkin-Poet problem [2, 3] as well as for e-H collisions. [1] R. K. Nesbet, Phys. Rev. B, \textbf{30}, 4230, 1984 [2] A.Temkin, Phys. Rev. A, \textbf{126}, 130, 1962 [3] R. Poet, J. Phys. B, \textbf{13,}2995,1980