Collision Operator for Relativistic Electrons
in a Cold Gas of Atomic Particles

L. P. Babich

Russian Federal Nuclear Center, Institute of Experimental Physics, Sarov, Nizhegorodskaya oblast, 607188 Russia

e-mail: kay@sar.ru

Received September 18, 2003

Abstract—The collision operator of relativistic electrons with a cold gas of atomic particles is derived consis-
tently taking into account elastic interactions, excitation of electron shells, and ionization. The creation of sec-
ondary electrons is described accurately. In the range of energies exceeding the binding energy of atomic elec-
trons, the operator implicates only the angular scattering by nuclei and the ionization integral that automatically
allows for scattering by atomic electrons. The collision operator used earlier for studying the kinetics of ava-
lanches of relativistic runaway electrons is analyzed. A more exact operator derived in the present study is sim-
pler in form and saves time in computer calculations. © 2004 MAIK “Nauka/Interperiodica”.

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