Scattering theory 1

Scattering theory
In mathematics and physics, scattering theory is a framework for studying and
understanding the scattering of waves and particles. Prosaically, wave scattering
corresponds to the collision and scattering of a wave with some material object, for instance
sunlight scattered by rain drops to form a rainbow. Scattering also includes the interaction
of billiard balls on a table, the Rutherford scattering (or angle change) of alpha particles by
gold nuclei, the Bragg scattering (or diffraction) of electrons and X-rays by a cluster of
atoms, and the inelastic scattering of a fission fragment as it traverses a thin foil. More
precisely, scattering consists of the study of how solutions of partial differential equations,
propagating freely "in the distant past", come together and interact with one another or with
a boundary condition, and then propagate away "to the distant future".

The direct scattering problem is the problem determining the distribution of scattered
radiation/particle flux basing on the characteristics of the scatterer.
The inverse scattering problem is the problem of determining the characteristics of an
object (e.g., its shape, internal constitution) from measurement data of radiation or particles
scattered from the object.
Since its early statement for radiolocation, the problem has found vast number of
applications, such as echolocation, geophysical survey, nondestructive testing, medical
imaging and quantum field theory, to name just a few.

Conceptual underpinnings
The concepts used in scattering theory go by different names in different fields. The object
Top: the real part of a
of this section is to point the reader to common threads.
plane wave travelling
upwards. Bottom: The
real part of the field
after inserting in the
path of the plane wave a
small transparent disk of
index of refraction
higher than the index of
the surrounding
medium. This object
scatters part of the wave
field, although at any
individual point, the
wave's frequency and
wavelength remain
intact.
Scattering theory 2

Composite targets and range equations

When the target is a set of many scattering
centers whose relative position varies
unpredictably, it is customary to think of a
range equation whose arguments take different
forms in different application areas. In the
simplest case consider an interaction that
removes particles from the "unscattered beam"
at a uniform rate that is proportional to the
incident flux I of particles per unit area per unit
time, i.e. that dI/dx = -QI where Q is an
interaction coefficient and x is the distance
traveled in the target.
The above ordinary first-order differential
equation has solutions of the form:

Equivalent quantities used in the theory of scattering from composite

specimens, but with a variety of units.

where Io is the initial flux, path length Δx≡x-xo, the second equality defines an interaction mean free path λ, the third
uses the number of targets per unit volume η to define an area cross-section σ, and the last uses the target mass
density ρ to define a density mean free path τ. Hence one converts between these quantities via Q = 1/λ = ησ = ρ/τ,
as shown in the figure at left.
In electromagnetic absorption spectroscopy, for example, interaction coefficient (e.g. Q in cm-1) is variously called
opacity, absorption coefficient, and attenuation coefficient. In nuclear physics, area cross-sections (e.g. σ in barns or
units of 10-24 cm2), density mean free path (e.g. τ in grams/cm2), and its reciprocal the mass attenuation coefficient
(e.g. in cm2/gram) or area per nucleon are all popular, while in electron microscopy the inelastic mean free path[1]
(e.g. λ in nanometers) is often discussed[2] instead.

In theoretical physics
In mathematical physics, scattering theory is a framework for studying and understanding the interaction or
scattering of solutions to partial differential equations. In acoustics, the differential equation is the wave equation,
and scattering studies how its solutions, the sound waves, scatter from solid objects or propagate through
non-uniform media (such as sound waves, in sea water, coming from a submarine). In the case of classical
electrodynamics, the differential equation is again the wave equation, and the scattering of light or radio waves is
studied. In quantum mechanics and particle physics, the equations are those of quantum electrodynamics QED,
quantum chromodynamics QCD and the Standard Model, the solutions of which correspond to fundamental
particles. In quantum chemistry, the solutions correspond to atoms and molecules, governed by the Schrödinger
equation.
Scattering theory 3

Elastic and inelastic scattering

The example of scattering in quantum chemistry is particularly instructive, as the theory is reasonably complex while
still having a good foundation on which to build an intuitive understanding. When two atoms are scattered off one
another, one can understand them as being the bound state solutions of some differential equation. Thus, for
example, the hydrogen atom corresponds to a solution to the Schrödinger equation with a negative inverse-power
(i.e., attractive Coulombic) central potential. The scattering of two hydrogen atoms will disturb the state of each
atom, resulting in one or both becoming excited, or even ionized. Thus, collisions can be either elastic (the internal
quantum states of the particles are not changed) or inelastic (the internal quantum states of the particles are changed).
From the experimental viewpoint the observable quantity is the cross section. From the theoretical viewpoint the key
quantity is the S matrix.

Topics in physics
According to the optics classification of the Optical Society of America this field consists of the following topics:

• Aerosol and cloud effects • Long-wave scattering • Rayleigh Scattering

• Atmospheric scattering • Mie theory • Scattering from rough surfaces
• Backscattering • Multiple scattering • Stimulated scattering
• Diffusion • Scattering measurements • Stimulated Brillouin scattering
• Extinction • Brillouin scattering • Stimulated Raman scattering
• Index measurements • Molecular scattering • Scintillation
• Inverse scattering • Particle scattering • Turbid media
• Linewidth • Raman scattering

The mathematical framework

In mathematics, scattering theory deals with a more abstract formulation of the same set of concepts. For example, if
a differential equation is known to have some simple, localized solutions, and the solutions are a function of a single
parameter, that parameter can take the conceptual role of time. One then asks what might happen if two such
solutions are set up far away from each other, in the "distant past", and are made to move towards each other, interact
(under the constraint of the differential equation) and then move apart in the "future". The scattering matrix then
pairs solutions in the "distant past" to those in the "distant future".
Solutions to differential equations are often posed on manifolds. Frequently, the means to the solution requires the
study of the spectrum of an operator on the manifold. As a result, the solutions often have a spectrum that can be
identified with a Hilbert space, and scattering is described by a certain map, the S matrix, on Hilbert spaces. Spaces
with a discrete spectrum correspond to bound states in quantum mechanics, while a continuous spectrum is
associated with scattering states. The study of inelastic scattering then asks how discrete and continuous spectra are
mixed together.
An important, notable development is the inverse scattering transform, central to the solution of many exactly
solvable models.
Scattering theory 4

References
• Lectures of the European school on theoretical methods for electron and positron induced chemistry, Prague, Feb.
2005 [3]
• E. Koelink, Lectures on scattering theory, Delft the Netherlands 2006 [4]

References
[1] R. F. Egerton (1996) Electron energy-loss spectroscopy in the electron microscope (Second Edition, Plenum Press, NY) ISBN 0-306-45223-5
[2] Ludwig Reimer (1997) Transmission electron microscopy: Physics of image formation and microanalysis (Fourth Edition, Springer, Berlin)
ISBN 3-540-62568-2
[3] http:/ / www. mif. pg. gda. pl/ homepages/ slawek/ epic/ sem. htm
[4] http:/ / fa. its. tudelft. nl/ ~koelink/ dictaat-scattering. pdf
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