Shielding Correction to the Electrical Microfield in a Plasma and to Holtsmark's Theory of Line Broadening.

Abstract

The probability distribution for the electrical microfield in a plasma is calculated by Markoff's method. The mutual shielding of positive and negative charges is formally handled by means of the Debye-Hiickel theory for strong electrolytes. The shielding effect is found to produce strong deviations from the original Holtsmark distribution, e.g., a strong shift of the maximum toward weak fields and a reduction of the half-width of the distribution. These effects influence the shape of spectral lines as seriously as does the time-dependence of the microfield.