Time-dependent and temperature-dependent aspects of electron distribution functions: H, Ar, and Cs atomic gases

Abstract

Time-dependent and temperature-dependent aspects of the thermalization of electrons in atomic gases are studied by using the Boltzmann equation. H, Ar, and Cs gases were chosen for the present study because of the characteristic and significantly different dependences of their momentum-transfer cross sections on electron energy; H has a smoothly varying cross section, Ar has a conspicuous Ramsauer–Townsend minimum, and Cs has a resonance-like peak. The effects of these cross section shapes on electron distribution functions and degradation spectra are examined.