DWBA-G calculations of electron impact ionization of noble gas atoms

We perform calculations of electron impact ionization of noble gas atoms within the distorted wave Born approximation (DWBA) corrected by the Gamow factor (G) to account for the post-collision interaction. We make an extensive comparison with experimental data on He 1s², Ne 2s², 2p⁶ and Ar 3p⁶ under kinematics characterized by large energy transfer and close to minimum momentum transfer from the projectile to the target. For all atoms, good agreement between theory and experiment is achieved. In the case of Ar, the disagreement of experimental data with theory reported earlier by Catoire et al (2006 J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 39 2827) is reconciled.