Plasma Shifts of Ion Lines

Abstract

AbstractShifts due to interactions of radiating or absorbing atoms or ions with charged particles in a plasma are generally assumed to be negligible, e.g., in ments of atomic energy levels or in calculations of radiative transfer. However, it has long been known that electron collisions can cause shifts which are a significant fraction of the corresponding widths, and that ion-radiator interactions give rise to shifts and profile asymmetries through quadratic Stark effects and quadrupole corrections to the usual dipole interactions. The interplay between these various effects is particularly interesting for highly charged radiators for which electron effects are enhanced by the strong electron-radiator Coulomb attraction (plasma polarization shift). As examples, calculations for hydrogen- and helium-like ions will be discussed and be compared with measurements.