Electron transport in biomolecular gaseous and liquid systems: theory, experiment and self-consistent cross-sections

Abstract

Accurate modelling of electron transport in plasmas, plasma-liquid and plasma-tissue interactions requires (i) the existence of accurate and complete sets of cross-sections, and (ii) an accurate treatment of electron transport in these gaseous and soft-condensed phases. In this study we present progress towards the provision of self-consistent electron-biomolecule cross-section sets representative of tissue, including water and THF, by comparison of calculated transport coefficients with those measured using a pulsed-Townsend swarm experiment. Water-argon mixtures are used to assess the self-consistency of the electron-water vapour cross-section set proposed in de Urquijo et al (2014 J. Chem. Phys. 141 014308). Modelling of electron transport in liquids and soft-condensed matter is considered through appropriate generalisations of Boltzmann's equation to account for spatialtemporal correlations and screening of the electron potential. The ab initio formalism is applied to electron transport in atomic liquids and compared with available experimental swarm data for these noble liquids. Issues on the applicability of the ab initio formalism for krypton are discussed and addressed through consideration of the background energy of the electron in liquid krypton. The presence of self-trapping (into bubble/cluster states/solvation) in some liquids requires a reformulation of the governing Boltzmann equation to account for the combined localised-delocalised nature of the resulting electron transport. A generalised Boltzmann equation is presented which is highlighted to produce dispersive transport observed in some liquid systems.

A Relativistic Complex Optical Potential Calculation for Electron–Beryllium Scattering: Recommended Cross Sections

“…One important example of this is in simulating electron transport under an applied external electric field through the background gas of interest (i.e., swarm physics). [26][27][28][29] While we do not explicitly include plots of the available theoretical ICS results for either elastic scattering 7,8 or the summed electronic-states, 7,8,30 it would be remiss of us not to provide a brief summary of their current status.…”

Total electron scattering cross sections from thiophene for the (1-300 eV) impact energy range

“…Electron interactions with complex molecules have been the subject of great interest in the last few years due to their relevance in important applications such as radiation damage 1,2 and electron transport in plasmas 3 and condensed media. 4 These applications require evaluated differential (DCS) and integral (ICS) cross section data over a broad energy range for which different theoretical and experimental techniques need to be applied and the consistency between the corresponding results needs to be verified.…”

BEAMDB and MOLD—Databases at the Serbian Virtual Observatory for Collisional and Radiative Processes

“…Electron collision cross sections are also a subject of databases with the particular interest in plasma processes data. An overview of such databases is given by Huo and Kim [13] and White et al [14], with the emphasis on the role of electron collisional data in gases and surfaces in plasma processes. Another database specialized for modelling in low-temperature plasma is the LXCat database [15].…”