The electron-sodium system is a prototype of nonrelativistic electron scattering from a quasi-one-electron atomic target and is tractable both experimentally and theoretically. Recently, this system has been studied in a series of sophisticated measurements that together approach complete experiments for elastic (3s→3s) and inelastic (3s→3p) scattering. We apply here the theory of orientation and alignment (OA) in atomic collisions to this system using scattering matrices from coupled channel R-matrix calculations described in the first paper in this series [W. K. Trail et al., Phys. Rev. A 49, 3620 (1994)]. To facilitate the extension of OA theory to other transitions and systems and to clarify its relationship to canonical scattering theory, we present a reformulation in terms of the state spaces identified by a particular scattering event. Following the application of this formulation to paradigmatic OA experiments, we compare our results to those from existing measurements and other theoretical calculations. To contextualize these experiments and aid in identifying promising regions for future measurements, we also present a comprehensive three-dimensional overview of the calculated differential OA parameters for energies from threshold to 8.6 eV.

• Received 27 December 1994

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.52.1152