Destruction of fastH(2S)atoms in collisions with neon, krypton, xenon, and molecular hydrogen

Abstract
Measurements are reported for the total quenching of metastable hydrogen atoms by neon, krypton, xenon, and molecular hydrogen, in the energy range 0.052-3 keV. The cross sections are found to be on the order of 5 × 1015 cm2 at the lowest energies, and decrease to approximately 2 × 1015 cm2 at the highest energies. The data at low energy are analyzed using a simple theoretical model.