ABSTRACT
Low-energy electron-molecule scattering has been studied in the gas phase for over 80 years, beginning with experiments by Franck and Hertz [1] in 1914 (for a review of gaseous electron-molecule collision processes, see Refs. 2-5). While such research has usually been performed on isolated targets, more recent work (commencing around 1980) has extended "electron-scattering" type measurements and theory into the condensed phase to determine the interactions of electrons with the atomic and molecular constituents of solids and liquids, thus providing new challenges to our understanding of the basic physics of electron scattering. Particular attention has been directed to the interactions of low-energy electrons (LEEs), that is, electrons with kinetic energies lower than 30 eV, since these species are implicated in a large number of phenomena and processes operating in the condensed phase systems, from radiation damage [6] and the electronic aging of dielectrics [7], friction induced damage to lubricants [8] and nanolithography [9], and to (potentially) the production of O2 in extraterrestrial water ices [10] and depletion of the ozone [11].
