The role of electron capture and energy exchange of positively charged particles passing through matter

Abstract

The conventional treatment of the Bethe-Bloch equation for protons accounts for electron capture at the end of the projectile track by the small Barkas correction. This is only a possible way for protons, whereas for light and heavier charged nuclei the exchange of energy and charge along the track has to be accounted for by regarding the projectile charge q as a function of the residual energy. This leads to a significant modification of the Bethe-Bloch equation, otherwise the range in a medium is incorrectly determined. The LET in the Bragg peak domain and distal end is significantly influenced by the electron capture. A rather significant result is that in the domain of the Bragg peak the superiority of carbon ions is reduced compared to protons.