Electron impact polarization of X-ray lines from hydrogen-like ions during solar flares

Abstract

The linear polarization of X-ray lines from highly charged hydrogenic ions is calculated under the assumption that the ions are collisionally excited by nonthermal electrons with an anisotropic pitch-angle distribution around magnetic field lines. The results are applied to the conditions in solar flares. The maximum degree of polarization to be expected is quite low, of the order of some percent. In case of favourable conditions it should be feasible to detect line polarization during flares if the short-wavelength fine-structure component of the Lα doublet is observed.