Kinetic Theory of Particles and Photons

1. Front Matter

   Pages I-XII

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2. Thermal Equilibrium and Detailed Balance

   • Joachim Oxenius

   Pages 1-34

3. Kinetic Equations of Particles

   • Joachim Oxenius

   Pages 35-65

4. The Kinetic Equation of Photons

   • Joachim Oxenius

   Pages 66-86

5. Moment Equations and Fluid Description

   • Joachim Oxenius

   Pages 87-126

6. H Theorem for Gases and Radiation

   • Joachim Oxenius

   Pages 127-148

7. Energy Exchange Between Matter and Radiation

   • Joachim Oxenius

   Pages 149-239

8. Momentum Exchange Between Matter and Radiation

   • Joachim Oxenius

   Pages 240-273

9. Appendices

   • Joachim Oxenius

   Pages 274-343

10. Back Matter

    Pages 345-356

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Many laboratory and astrophysical plasmas show deviations from local ther­ modynamic equilibrium (LTE). This monograph develops non-LTE plasma spectroscopy as a kinetic theory of particles and photons, considering the radiation field as a photon gas whose distribution function (the radiation in­ tensity) obeys a kinetic equation (the radiative transfer equation), just as the distribution functions of particles obey kinetic equations. Such a unified ap­ proach provides clear insight into the physics of non-LTE plasmas. Chapter 1 treats the principle of detailed balance, of central importance for understanding the non-LTE effects in plasmas. Chapters 2, 3 deal with kinetic equations of particles and photons, respectively, followed by a chapter on the fluid description of gases with radiative interactions. Chapter 5 is devoted to the H theorem, and closes the more general first part of the book. The last two chapters deal with more specific topics. After briefly discuss­ ing optically thin plasmas, Chap. 6 treats non-LTE line transfer by two-level atoms, the line profile coefficients of three-level atoms, and non-Maxwellian electron distribution functions. Chapter 7 discusses topics where momentum exchange between matter and radiation is crucial: the approach to thermal equilibrium through interaction with blackbody radiation, radiative forces, and Compton scattering. A number of appendices have been added to make the book self-contained and to treat more special questions. In particular, Appendix B contains an in­ troductory discussion of atomic line profile coefficients.

• Absorption
• Boltzmann equation
• Brownian motion
• Photons
• Plasma
• atoms
• distribution
• electron
• kinetic theory
• particles
• photon
• physics
• radiation
• scattering
• spectroscopy

• Service de Chimie Physique II, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Bruxelles, Belgium

  Joachim Oxenius

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