Excited states of muonic helium hydride ions and their possible impact on muon reactivation

Several previously unknown resonances of the alpha t mu helium hydride ion have been identified using a variational procedure. It is suggested that th ese resonances may form in alpha mu(1s)-TD(T-2) scattering, for centre of m ass collision energies in the range 8-10 keV. If the molecular complex [(al pha t mu)*dee]* is formed in a dissociative state (with respect to the alph a t mu-d coordinate), the dissociation energy may in part be transferred to the muonic degrees of freedom, opening the exit channel [(alpha t mu)*dee] * --> t mu + alpha e + T, effectively amounting to muon transfer from alpha to t. We present a theoretical formulation of this novel and hypothetical mechanism for muon reactivation together with a numerical calculation of it s cross-section for a special case.