Abstract
Antiproton (p¯) and negative muon (μ) captures by helium and neon atoms are treated using the fermion- molecular-dynamics method, yielding capture cross sections, initial quantum numbers, and ejected-electron energies. The calculated angular-momentum distributions tend to pile up at l=n1 and are not well fitted by the form (2l+1)eαl, which is often assumed in experimental analyses. The residual electrons are generally left in a “shake-up” state. When capture is accompanied by multiple ionization, the second and later electrons escape with increasing kinetic energies, a process that is not well described as quasiadiabatic. In a 50:50 mixture of helium and neon, the calculated Ne:He capture ratios are 3.36 for p¯ and 3.69 for μ. The μ per-atom capture probability is almost independent of the neon fraction and is in overall agreement with several μ and π experiments; for p¯ there is a rather strong dependence on neon fraction, but there are as yet no experiments. The possible experimental indication of a strong isotope effect on capture of π in mixtures of 3He and 4He is not supported by the present calculation.