  Radiative double electron capture (RDEC) is a one-step process where two free
(or quasi-free) target electrons are captured into a bound state of the
projectile, e.g. into an empty K-shell, and the energy excess is released as a
single photon. This process can be treated as a time inverse of double
photoionization. However, unlike in case of photoionization experiments, bare
ions are used during RDEC observations. Thus, RDEC can be considered as the
simplest, clean tool for investigation of the electron-electron interaction in
the presence of electromagnetic fields generated during ion-atom collisions.
  Within this dissertation, the 38 MeV O(8+) + C experiment, conducted at
Western Michigan University using the tandem Van de Graaff accelerator, is
discussed and the first experimental evidence of the RDEC process is presented.
The cross section obtained experimentally is compared to the latest theoretical
calculations.
