摘要： Collisions between an ion and neutral species result in a number of possible outcomes depending upon the chemical and physical properties of the two reactants, their relative velocities, and the impact parameter of their trajectories. These include elastic and inelastic scattering of the colliding particles, charge transfer (including dissociative charge transfer), atom abstraction, complex formation and dissociation of the colliding ion. Each of these reactions may be characterized in terms of their energy-dependent rate coefficients, cross sections and reaction kinetics. This article outlines a theoretical framework for discussing these processes that emphasizes simple models and classical mechanics. The discussion of collision processes has been divided into two categories: low-energy and high-energy thermal or quasi-thermal collisions. Experiments under conditions – swarms, drift tubes, chemical ionization and ion cyclotron resonance – are strongly influenced by long-range forces and often involve ‘capture collisions’ in which atom exchange and extensive energy exchange are common characteristics. High-energy collisions are typically impulsive, involve short-range intermolecular forces and are direct, fast processes.