Collision induced desorption by "hot" atoms: Desorption of O-2 from Ag(110)

A detailed study, using molecular dynamics, of O-2 desorption from Ag(110) following a collision with "hot'' oxygen atoms is presented. The interactio ns in the system are described by semiempirical model potentials. The varia tion of desorption yield and desorbate angular and energy distributions as a function of "hot'' atom energy and surface coverage is examined. The comp utational results clearly show that the collision induced desorption, follo wing photo-induced dissociation of O-2, is a plausible explanation of the e xperimental findings. The coverage dependence of collision induced desorpti on cross section and the angular distribution of desorbates agree well with the corresponding measured quantities. (C) 2000 American Institute of Phys ics. [S0021-9606(00)70906-8].