Electron- And Proton-Impact Excitation Of Heliumlike Uranium In Relativistic Collisions

We have studied the K-shell excitation of He-like uranium (U90+) in relativistic collisions with hydrogen and argon atoms. Performing measurements with different targets, as well as with different collision energies, enabled us to explore the proton- (nucleus-) impact excitation as well as the electron-impact excitation process for the heaviest He-like ion. The large fine-structure splitting in uranium allowed us to partially resolve excitation into different L-shell levels. State-of-the-art relativistic calculations which include excitation mechanisms due to the interaction with both protons (nucleus) and electrons are in good agreement with the experimental findings. Moreover, our experimental data clearly demonstrate the importance of including the generalized Breit interaction in the treatment of the electron-impact excitation process.