Multi-electron dynamics for neutralization of highly charged ions near surfaces

We present a simulation of the neutralization of highly charged ions in front of a lithium fluoride surface including the close-collision regime above the surface. The present approach employs a Monte-Carlo solution of the Liouville master equation for the joint probability density of the ionic motion and the electronic population of the projectile and the target surface. It includes single as well as double particle-hole (de)excitation processes and incorporates electron correlation effects through the conditional dynamics of population strings. For slow projectiles and normal incidence, the ionic motion depends sensitively on the interplay between image acceleration towards the surface and repulsion by an ensemble of positive hole charges in the surface ("trampoline effect"). For Ne10+ we find that image acceleration is dominant and no collective backscattering high above the surface takes place. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.