Theoretical Investigations of Gas–Solid Interaction Phenomena. II. Three‐Dimensional Treatment

A three‐dimensional, classical study of gas–solid surface interaction phenomena is reported. An independent‐oscillator lattice model is assumed to represent the crystal surface. Nine movable lattice sites are connected to fixed points by harmonic springs in a geometry chosen to represent either the (100) or (111) planes of a Ni crystal. The interaction potential is constructed from nine pairwise Morse potentials operating between the incident gaseous atom and the nine movable lattice points. Energy‐transfer coefficients (ETC) and spatial distributions are calculated as a function of incidence angle, gaseous beam velocity and temperature, surface temperature, gaseous atom mass, lattice force constant, and attractive well depth and curvature by numerical solution of the 60 differential‐motion equations. The results indicate that the ETC should decrease with increasing incidence angle, decreasing attractive well depth and curvature, increasing lattice force constant, and decreasing isotopic mass of the incid...