Radiative Processes in Astrophysics

George B. Rybicki received his B.S. degree in physics from Carnegie-Mellon University and his Ph.D. in physics from Harvard University. He is a physicist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and lecturer in the Astronomy Department at Harvard. His research interests include stellar atmospheres, stellar dynamics and radiative transfer.Alan P. Lightman received his A.B. degree in physics from Princeton University and his Ph.D. in theoretical physics from the California Institute of Technology. He was a research fellow at Cornell and then an Assistant Professor of Astronomy at Harvard University from 1976-1979. He is presently at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. His research includes work in general relativity, the astrophysics of black holes, radiation mechanisms, and stellar dynamics. He is also a coauthor of Problem Book in Relativity and Gravitation (1975).

• Chapter 1 Fundamentals of Radiative Transfer1.1 The Electromagnetic Spectrum; Elementary Properties of Radiation1.2 Radiative Flux1.3 The Specific Intensity and Its Moments1.4 Radiative Transfer1.5 Thermal Radiation1.6 The Einstein Coefficients1.7 Scattering Effects; Random Walks1.8 Radiative DiffusionChapter 2 Basic Theory of Radiation Fields2.1 Review of Maxwell's Equations2.2 Plane Electromagnetic Waves2.3 The Radiation Spectrum2.4 Polarization and Stokes Parameters 622.5 Electromagnetic Potentials2.6 Applicability of Transfer Theory and the Geometrical Optics LimitChapter 3 Radiation from Moving Charges3.1 Retarded Potentials of Single Moving Charges: The Liénard-Wiechart Potentials3.2 The Velocity and Radiation Fields3.3 Radiation from Nonrelativistic Systems of Particles3.4 Thomson Scattering (Electron Scattering)3.5 Radiation Reaction3.6 Radiation from Harmonically Bound ParticlesChapter 4 Relativistic Covariance and Kinematics4.1 Review of Lorentz Transformations4.2 Four-Vectors4.3 Tensor Analysis4.4 Covariance of Electromagnetic Phenomena4.5 A Physical Understanding of Field Transformations 1294.6 Fields of a Uniformly Moving Charge4.7 Relativistic Mechanics and the Lorentz Four-Force4.8 Emission from Relativistic Particles4.9 Invariant Phase Volumes and Specific IntensityChapter 5 Bremsstrahlung5.1 Emission from Single-Speed Electrons5.2 Thermal Bremsstrahlung Emission5.3 Thermal Bremsstrahlung (Free-Free) Absorption5.4 Relativistic BremsstrahlungChapter 6 Synchrotron Radiation6.1 Total Emitted Power6.2 Spectrum of Synchrotron Radiation: A Qualitative Discussion6.3 Spectral Index for Power-Law Electron Distribution6.4 Spectrum and Polarization of Synchrotron Radiation: A Detailed Discussion6.5 Polarization of Synchrotron Radiation6.6 Transition from Cyclotron to Synchrotron Emission6.7 Distinction between Received and Emitted Power6.8 Synchrotron Self-Absorption6.9 The Impossibility of a Synchrotron Maser in VacuumChapter 7 Compton Scattering7.1 Cross Section and Energy Transfer for the Fundamental Process7.2 Inverse Compton Power for Single Scattering7.3 Inverse Compton Spectra for Single Scattering7.4 Energy Transfer for Repeated Scatterings in a Finite, Thermal Medium: The Compton Y Parameter7.5 Inverse Compton Spectra and Power for Repeated Scatterings by Relativistic Electrons of Small Optical Depth7.6 Repeated Scatterings by Nonrelativistic Electrons: The Kompaneets Equation7.7 Spectral Regimes for Repeated Scattering by Nonrelativistic ElectronsChapter 8 Plasma Effects8.1 Dispersion in Cold, Isotropic Plasma8.2 Propagation Along a Magnetic Field; Faraday Rotation8.3 Plasma Effects in High-Energy Emission ProcessesChapter 9 Atomic Structure9.1 A Review of the Schrödinger Equation9.2 One Electron in a Central Field9.3 Many-Electron Systems9.4 Perturbations, Level Splittings, and Term Diagrams9.5 Thermal Distribution of Energy Levels and IonizationChapter 10 Radiative Transitions10.1 Semi-Classical Theory of Radiative Transitions10.2 The Dipole Approximation10.3 Einstein Coefficients and Oscillator Strengths10.4 Selection Rules10.5 Transition Rates10.6 Line Broadening MechanismsChapter 11 Molecular Structure11.1 The Born-Oppenheimer Approximation: An Order of Magnitude Estimate of Energy Levels11.2 Electronic Binding of Nuclei11.3 Pure Rotation Spectra11.4 Rotation-Vibration Spectra11.5 Electronic-Rotational-Vibrational SpectraSolutionsIndex