Anisotropic Comptonization in thermal plasmas - Spectral distribution in plane-parallel geometry

Abstract

view Abstract Citations (97) References (28) Co-Reads Similar Papers Volume Content Graphics Metrics Export Citation NASA/ADS Anisotropic Comptonization in Thermal Plasmas: Spectral Distribution in Plane-Parallel Geometry Haardt, Francesco Abstract We present a semi-analytical formulation of the problem of inverse Compton scattering of low-frequency radiation in a hot thermal plasma. The scattering medium is assumed to have a plan-parallel geometry, and an input radiation field is localized on one side of the slab. The angular and energy distributions of the emitted radiation are computed taking into account the effects due to the anisotropy of the input photons. We show how the Comptonized spectrum depends on three parameters, namely the optical depth of the medium, the temperature of thermal electrons, and the viewing angle. The spectral shape is approximately, but not exactly, a broken power law. Our method allows to compute angle-dependent Compton spectra for a broad range of input parameters with a modest computational effort. Publication: The Astrophysical Journal Pub Date: August 1993 DOI: 10.1086/173036 Bibcode: 1993ApJ...413..680H Keywords: Anisotropy; Compton Effect; Electron Scattering; Photons; Thermal Plasmas; Electron Distribution; Iteration; Probability Density Functions; Plasma Physics; RADIATION MECHANISMS: MISCELLANEOUS; RADIATIVE TRANSFER full text sources ADS |