Abstract
On a microscopic level a gas is comprised of material particles at various levels of internal excitations, moving randomly in space (executing thermal or kinetic motions). The problem of the kinetic theory of gases is to determine the distributions of the thermal velocities and of the level populations. This task is complicated by the fact that these distributions are determined by the combined effects of a number of competing mechanisms, including collisions between the particles as well as various radiative processes.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1992 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Elitzur, M. (1992). Basic Background Concepts. In: Astronomical Masers. Astrophysics and Space Science Library, vol 170. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-2394-5_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-2394-5_2
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-0-7923-1217-8
Online ISBN: 978-94-011-2394-5
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive