Measurement of low-energy total absolute atomic collision cross sections with the metastable 3P2 state of neon using a magneto-optical trap

We present total absolute collision cross sections for neon in the P-3(2) metastable state with ground state, thermal atoms and molecules using a recently developed experimental technique. The technique utilizes a magneto-optical trap (MOT) and involves the measurement of MOT population dynamics to determine the cross section. Collision cross section measurements are presented for metastable neon in the P-3(2) state with He, Ne, Ar, H-2, O-2, and N-2. The average thermal energy of the collision ranges from 11 to 27 meV. The measurements made using this technique have small errors, of the order of 10% of the measured cross section; the technique is capable of producing benchmark collision cross sections.