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Physics

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  • $\begingroup$ You could try learning about thin target Bremsstrahlung or inverse Compton scattering but I am not sure how accessible these topics are to a layperson. The basic issue is that you cannot accelerate (i.e., change direction or speed) an electron without it emitting some form of electromagnetic radiation. The spectrum of this radiation is often specific to the acceleration mechanism, which allows astronomers to diagnose various things in far off galaxies etc. $\endgroup$
    – honeste_vivere
    Commented May 2 at 13:23
  • $\begingroup$ My interest is on the behavior of the beam bunches going through light seconds (300,000km, rounded up) of thin plasma, specifically how much it would spread out from scattering effects. Are you suggesting that brem and IC emissions would dominate that scattering? $\endgroup$
    – cthon
    Commented May 2 at 16:08
  • $\begingroup$ Well a relativistic beam, if dense enough, would also be unstable to plasma instabilities that radiate electromagnetic waves. During the radiation of the waves, the beam is scattered and decelerated (i.e., must conserve energy and momentum), which would be very fast compared to Brem. and IC if the beam propagates into a tenuous medium. $\endgroup$
    – honeste_vivere
    Commented May 2 at 19:19