Quantitative theory of channeling particle diffusion in transverse energy in the presence of nuclear scattering and direct evaluation of dechanneling length

Abstract

Abstract A refined equation for channeling particle diffusion in transverse energy taking into consideration large-angle scattering by nuclei is suggested. This equation is reduced to the Sturm–Liouville problem, allowing one to reveal both the origin and the limitations of the dechanneling length notion. The values of the latter are evaluated for both positively and negatively charged particles of various energies. New features of the dechanneling dynamics of positively charged particles are also revealed. First, it is demonstrated that the dechanneling length notion is completely inapplicable for their nuclear dechanneling process. Second, the effective electron dechanneling length of positively charged particle varies more than twice converging to a constant asymptotic value only at the depth exceeding the latter.