Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
Jun 1976
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1976ap%26ss..41..423s&link_type=abstract
Astrophysics and Space Science, vol. 41, June 1976, p. 423-434.
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
13
Charge Distribution, Cosmic Dust, Electric Charge, Interstellar Matter, Grains, Graphs (Charts), H I Regions, Molecular Gases
Scientific paper
The author reconsiders Spitzer's (1941 and 1948) approach and results on the electric charge of interstellar grains, and shows that if the magnitude of the most likely charge on a particle is very large, then the distribution function of the fraction of particles with given charge size will peak sharply at this value, so that fluctuations about it will be small and Spitzer's results will be in general valid. However, if the most likely charge is not very large, as is the case in H I regions or in dense molecular clouds, fluctuations will be of significance. Thus there will exist a charge distribution and correspondingly, there will be a certain proportion of the time for which each grain is negatively charged, positively charged, and neutral. The results are applied to diffusive and directed grain motion in a magnetic field, and it is shown that significant effects can arise from the decoupling of the motion of the grain from the field during periods when it is neutral. Discussion is also given to the effect of the varying grain charge on the effective cross sections for particle collisions and consequent implications for molecular synthesis.
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