ION DYNAMICAL CORRECTIONS TO THE HOLTSMARK THEORY OF SPECTRAL LINE BROADENING

Summary

A method is described whereby earlier work by Kogan and Griem on ion dynamical corrections to the Holtsmark theory of spectral line shapes may be generalized to include the effects of Debye shielding and ion-ion correlations. Expressions for the dynamical corrections to the Holtsmark profile of a single Stark component are obtained to second order in the inverse Debye length. The correction terms are evaluated in the case of a high-density plasma (N_e ∼ 10¹⁷ cm⁻³), and the results used to discuss the central structure of the hydrogen Balmer β line profile. On the basis of our model, it is concluded that allowance for ion motion, with or without shielding, cannot account for outstanding discrepancies between the calculated and measured central structure of this line, under these conditions.