Electron capture by heavy multicharged ions from atomic hydrogen at low velocities

Total cross sections for capture of an electron by ${\\mathrm{Xe}}^{q+}(2\\ensuremath{\\le}q\\ensuremath{\\le}12)$, ${\\mathrm{Ar}}^{q+}(2\\ensuremath{\\le}q\\ensuremath{\\le}9)$, and ${\\mathrm{Fe}}^{q+}(q=5,6)$ colliding with atomic and molecular hydrogen have been measured for velocities between ${10}^{7}$ and ${10}^{8}$ cm/s. The cross sections vary from below 1 \\ifmmode\\times\\else\\texttimes\\fi{} ${10}^{\\ensuremath{-}16}$ ${\\mathrm{cm}}^{2}$, with the measured values for $q\\ensuremath{\\ge}4$ all greater than 37 \\ifmmode\\times\\else\\texttimes\\fi{} ${10}^{\\ensuremath{-}16}$ ${\\mathrm{cm}}^{2}$. The cross sections are independent of ionic species for a given $q$ and are generally constant with changing velocity. The cross sections increase linearly with $q$ up to $q=9$, but for the highest-charge states $q=9\\ensuremath{-}12$, the data suggest that the cross sections do not continue to increase as rapidly with increasing $q$.