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Saha equation - Definition and Overview |
| Related Words: Addend, Antilogarithm, Argument, Balance, Base, Binomial, Characteristic, Coefficient, Combination, Complement, Congruence, Constant, Correspondence, Cosine, Cotangent, Cube, Decimal, Denominator, Derivative, Determinant, Difference, Differential, Discriminate |
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Developed by the Indian astrophysicist Meghnad Saha in 1920, this formula describes the degree of ionization of a gas as a function of the temperature T, density, and ionization energy.
Let <math>X = n_e/n<math> be the ionization fraction, i.e., the electron density relative to the total density of atoms and ions. Then the Saha equation is
<math>\frac{X^2}{1-X} = \frac{1}{nh^3} \left(2\pi m_ek_BT\right)^{3/2} e^{-I/k_BT}<math>
where h is Planck's constant and I is the ionization energy.
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