Polarization Bremsstrahlung in Distant Collisions

Abstract

In ordinary bremsstrahlung, near collisions lead to the appearance of rather high frequencies, whereas distant collisions yield rather low frequencies. Since, as we have noted, polarization bremsstrahlung is most efficient at relatively low frequencies, it becomes necessary to examine the effects of distant collisions. Perturbation theory can be used to study them under the assumption that an incident particle produces a small perturbation in the polarization cloud of a target particle (see [1]). For the time being, we shall not specify whether this cloud is produced by bound electrons, as in a neutral atom, or by free electrons, as in a plasma.