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0 votes
0 answers
43 views

Mean free path equation for plasma

Does the mean free path equation $$\lambda=\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}\pi d^2 n_v}$$ work for collisions in plasma or just for gas?
Waev's user avatar
  • 33
0 votes
0 answers
52 views

Standard deviation for a free path distribution

I would like to be able to describe a particles path before collisions with greater precision. We can calculate the "mean" free path of a particle before colliding moving particles, but I ...
Roman Grachev's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
40 views

Why does computing mean free path from an air molecule's reference frame seem to greatly overestimate path length?

I was interested in seeing if I could derive the mean free path of an "air molecule" by considering the reference frame of an individual molecule as other particles moved around it randomly. ...
trevR's user avatar
  • 1
2 votes
1 answer
181 views

How does $\frac{\langle v\rangle}{\langle v_r\rangle}=\frac{1}{\sqrt2}$ imply the formula for the mean free path?

In this question, it was asked how the formula $$l=\frac{1}{\sqrt 2n\sigma }$$ can be rigorously derived for a Maxwell-Boltzmann gas. Here $l$ is the mean free path length in a gas, $n$ is the gas ...
Riemann's user avatar
  • 1,440
0 votes
0 answers
176 views

Free Path Probability Distribution for an Ideal Gas

Suppose we have a gas with collisions. The mean free path, $l$, is the average distance a particle travels before colliding with another particle. This is the average, but what is the probability ...
Jbag1212's user avatar
  • 2,599
0 votes
1 answer
31 views

Collisional cross-section from attenuation factor

I am trying to find the mean free path of silver atoms travelling through air (I am given the temperature, pressure and that they are attenuated by a factor $2.72$ in a distance of $10^{-2}$m). I know ...
mp12853's user avatar
  • 75
1 vote
1 answer
1k views

How to calculate the free mean path of electrons in the gas mixture? [closed]

How to calculate the free mean path of electrons in the gas mixture? I understand (a little bit) the mean free path concept for the atomic collisions but I am not sure what to do if I am interested in ...
user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
3k views

Mean free path of electron in air?

I'm interested in approximating the mean free path of an electron in air. I think I'm going to need to add something more into my approximation because currently I calculate $400m$ for the mean free ...
Tomi's user avatar
  • 713
19 votes
3 answers
3k views

Rigorous derivation of the mean free path in a gas

Can anyone supply me with a derivation of the mean free path, of particles in a Maxwell Boltzmann Gas? Cited in various literature is the formula, \begin{align} \begin{split} \ell&=\frac{1}{\...
user400188's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
1k views

Most probable free path length

The distribution of scattering time is $nv\sigma e^{-nv\sigma t}$ where $\sigma$ is the collision-cross section, $n$ is the number density of molecules and $v$ is the average relative velocity. This ...
hola's user avatar
  • 155
0 votes
1 answer
55 views

How photons get distributed in a system?

Let's say I'm in a room, and there are plenty of things in my room like carpet,mirrors,glass and other stuff.And I see there are shadow regions and fully bright regions, and I want to know how photons ...
Gary Grey's user avatar
  • 399
6 votes
1 answer
574 views

Does it make sense to define the mean free path in quantum mechanics?

The mean free path defined in classical molecule dynamics has a strong classical flavor. Is it sensible to generalize the idea to quantum mechanics?
San's user avatar
  • 153
4 votes
2 answers
7k views

RMS Free Path vs Mean Free Path

I am trying to determine the mathematical difference between mean free path and root-mean-square free path. For an ideal gas, the relaxation time is $$\tau=\frac{1}{\sqrt2 \pi nd^2 \bar v}$$ and the ...
Greg Harrington's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
1k views

Energy of particle in electric field

I'm taking a physics class and the professor teaches us really basic things in lecture and then gives homework way beyond what he taught in lecture. Obviously I need to find some resource other than ...
Void Star's user avatar
  • 236