A New Formulation of an Approximate Transfer Equation
Abstract
Athay's derivation of a transfer equation from a statistical approach is criticized, and a new alternative is presented in which the same equation is established on different grounds. The independent variable which was taken as the reciprocal escape probability is redefined in a slightly different way. The quality of this new formulation is better than the previous one, and can be extended to time-dependent problems where it also shows exceptionally good agreement with the exact solutions. The present work is presented only in the frame of a two-level atom, in an atmosphere of constant T, for the sake of simplicity. However, it is more general, and some possible tests of its validity for complex cases are described. Subject heading: radiative transfer
- Publication:
-
The Astrophysical Journal
- Pub Date:
- September 1974
- DOI:
- 10.1086/153079
- Bibcode:
- 1974ApJ...192..475D