Classical Mott Scattering

Jahan Claes
T. Gay, advisor

September 23, 2013

Abstract
This report is designed for three purposes: first, to summarize my work this summer; second, to gather
together all theory and fomula necessary for a classical treatment of Mott scattering; and finally, to guide
a reader through my calculations and computer programs, so that they may reproduce and extend my
results. Each section may be read independently, provided the reader has a basic understanding of Mott
scattering, although occasionally reference may be made to other sections. If anything is unclear, I can
be reached at undiscoveredlama@uchicago.edu with any questions.

Contents
1 An overview of Mott scattering 2

2 Calculating the force 2

3 The computer programs 3

3.1 The central force program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
3.1.1 Finding the scattering angle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
3.1.2 Details of program operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3.2 The noncentral force program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.2.1 Finding the scattering angle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.2.2 Details of program operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.2.3 Current issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

4 Attempts at analytic solutions 11

4.1 Exact solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.2 The central force approximation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.2.1 A failed attempt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.3 The impulse approximation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
4.3.1 A second impulse approximation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

5 The Born approximation 17

5.1 First Born wave function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5.2 Solving the first Born approximation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5.3 Calculating the Sherman function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
5.4 A simpler approach to the first Born calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

1
 Figure 1: s and for electron scattering.

1 An overview of Mott scattering

Electrons scattering off a nucleus experience both Coulomb and spin-orbit forces. The potential is
A C ~ ~
V (~r) = + 3 (L S) (1)
r r
where
A = Ze2 k
(2)
Ze2 k
C = 2m2 c2

Figure 1 illustrates two important quantities in a scattering problem. s is the impact parameter, while
0 , sometimes just denoted , is the scattering angle.
d
We define the scattering cross section d () as

d Number of electrons through d in the direction

()d = (3)
d (Total incident electrons)(Beam size)

d
Let d
d be the scattering cross section for a beam of spin-up electrons, d the cross-section for spin-down.
Then we define the Sherman function S() by
d d
d () d ()
S() = d d
(4)
d () + d ()
Predicted Sherman functions for Mott scattering can be found, both tabulated and plotted, in Holzwarth
and Meister.

2 Calculating the force

Our particles move in a potential of the form
A C ~ ~
V = + 3 (L S) (5)
r r
Given a velocity-dependent potential V, force is calculated by

~ + d (
F~ = V ~ vV ) (6)
dt

2
where
~ v V ( V , V , V )
(7)
vx vy vz
The A/r term gives a force of Ar/r2 , since v Ar = 0. Meanwhile, for spin-up electrons,
C ~ ~ Cmh xvy yvx
3
(L S) = (8)
r 2 r3
The force from this term is then

F~ Cmh ~ xvy yv x d ~ xvy yvx

= 2 ( r3 + dt (v r3 ))
2 2
Cmh r vy +3x(xvy yvx ) r vx +3y(xvy yvx ) d y x
= 2 (( r5 , r5 ) + dt ( r 3 , r 3 ))
2 2
Cmh r vy +3x(xvy yvx ) r vx +3y(xvy yvx ) r 2 vy +3y(xvx +yvy ) r 2 vx 3x(xvx +yvy )
= 2 (( r5 , r5 ) + ( r5 , r5 )) (9)
2 2 2 2 2 2
Cmh 2r vy +3(x +y )vy 2r vx 3(x +y )vx
= 2 ( r5 , r5 )
Cmh vy vx
= 2 ( r3 , r3 )

so force is perpendicular to velocity, and goes as 1/r3 , like a dipole should.

3 The computer programs

In both of our programs, we create two functionone for spin up electrons, one for spin downwhich take an
impact parameter, s, and return the scattering angle , where and s are as illustrated in Figure 1. We let
f (s) be the function that takes an impact parameter to a scattering angle for spin-up electrons, and g(s) be
the function for spin-down electrons.
d
For the purpose of our program, we define the scattering cross section d () as
d Number of electrons through d in the direction
()d = (10)
d Total incident electrons
This is in fact a bastardization of the definition given in Section 1, which includes division by spot size, but
this version is more useful for our purposes. Ultimately, the spot size will fall out when calculating Sherman
functions, since we only consider ratios of cross sections.
Note that if we consider and independently, then d = sin()dd. Given a function f (s) which
takes an impact parameter to a scattering angle , a beam can be approximated by a collection of impact
parameters {si } distrubuted as s2 , resulting in a set of angles {i } {f (si )} approximating the distribution
of the scattered beam. If, at a given , n is the number of electrons scattered through some d and N is the
total number of electrons, then we have
d n
()d (11)
d N sin()d
Since, again, we are only interested in ratios of cross sections, we can leave in the d, since it will become
irrelevant in calculating the Sherman function. Use of this formula is illustrated in Figure 2 for pure Coulomb
scattering, using f (s) = 2 tan1 ( 2Es
A
) for a Coulomb trajectory. Note the good agreement with the predicted
4
csc () dependence.

d
Let d
d be the scattering cross section for a beam of spin-up electrons, d the cross-section for spin-down.
Then of course, we define the Sherman function S() by
d d
d () d ()
S() = d d
(12)
d ()
+ d ()
where we now have used our provisional definition of cross-section. It is fairly simple to check this is
equivalent to the definition of Sherman function given in Section 1.

3
Figure 2: The scattering cross section for pure Coulomb scattering, E = 46 KeV, Z=79. Blue is calculated
via our method above, while red is the csc4 () curve predicted by Goldstein.

3.1 The central force program

While we have seen in Section 2 that the spin-orbit force is not central but rather perpendicular to velocity,
it is approximately central when the electron is travelling very close to the nucleus. Since the force is only
significant when r is very small, it is thus useful to consider just the central part of the force. In this
approximation, angular momentum is conserved, and the electron moves in a potential of the form
A CLh
V (r) = (13)
r 2r3

where A and C are as given in Section 1, L = s 2mE is the angular momentum of the electron, and (+) is
used for spin up, () for spin down.

3.1.1 Finding the scattering angle

For a central potential, we can calculate the trajectory from a formula in Goldstein:
Z 1/r
du
(r) = q 1
(14)
0 2mE 2mV ( u )
L2 L2 u2

where we have used to denote the polar angle of a point in space, so as not to confuse it with , the
scattering angle.
The formula as presented above is only valid for the incoming portion of the trajectory. However, since
the trajectory is symmetric in a central force problem, this isnt a significant limitation. In going from r =
to r = rm (where rm is the minimum value of r), the trajectory subtends an angle (rm ) () = (rm ).
Thanks to the symmetry of the problem, this is also the angle subtended by the trajectory as the particle
goes from rm back out to . Thus, the total angle subtended by the trajectory is given by

tot = 2(rm )
R 1/r du (15)
= 2 0 m r
2mE 2mV ( 1 )
L2
L2 u u2

t is illustrated in Figure 3, along with . From this figure, we can readily see = t .

4
 Figure 3: An illustration of the angles t and .

To complete the computation of for a given s, we then only need to know 1/rm , the upper limit of our
integral. At rm , we know the velocity must be perpendicular to the radial vector, v = r. We also know
from conservation of energy that E = 21 mv 2 + Ar CLh
2r 3 at all points on the trajectory, and from conservation
of angular momentum that L = mr2 at all points on the trajectory. Therefore, at rm ,

1
E = 2 mv
2
+ A r1m CLh 1 3
2 ( rm )
1
= 2 2
2 mrm + A r1m CLh 1 3
2 ( rm )
(16)
2
L 1 2
= 2m ( rm ) + A r1m CLh 1 3
2 ( rm )

This is a polynomial in r1m , and can be easily solved by most computer programs. We thus have our two
functions, f (s) and g(s), and can calulate cross sections using the method outlined above.

3.1.2 Details of program operation

In this section, we go through the code chunk by chunk, explaining each parts purpose and how to properly
use the code.

Figure 4: The program begins by importing relevant packages and setting the values of all constants

5
 As seen in Figure 4, the program begins by importing all necessary math packages and setting the values
of all relevant constants. All constants are in SI units besides Eev, which is in electron volts. The energy of
the incoming electron may be set by changing the value of Eev to whatever is desired. Similarly, Z may be
changed to any atomic number desired.
thetamin is used to select an aproximate value of angle to restrict our attention to. We cannot go to
= 0 as this would require an infinite beam width. thetamin should be set as high as possible for any
given calculation. bmax is the maximum value our impact parameters will take. It is the maximum impact
parameter which still results in thetamin in the case of Coulomb scattering. bmin should almost always
be set to zero.
rand1 is a list of positive impact parameters between bmin and bmax, distributed as s2 . It is currently
set to generate 100000 random numbers; this can be increased for greater precision. Contrary to what one
might naively assume, the correct way to get a distribution which goes as s2 is to take the square roots of
numbers in a uniform distribution, not the squares. rand2 is the negative of rand1, and randlist is the full
random list of impact parameters, on both the positive and negative sides of the nucleus.

Figure 5: f(s) is implimented.

In Figure 5, we define f (s), the function which takes an impact parameter to a scattering angle for spin-
up electrons. First, due to rotational symmetry of the potential, a spin up electron with impact parameter s
scattering through is the same as a spin-down electron with impact parameter s scattering through .
Thus, we can consider only s 0, and pass s < 0 to g(s).
2
Now, given an impact parameter s we define the angular momentum, L = s 2mE. Then b = Ze kLh
4m2 c2 is
1
the coefficient of r3 in our scattering potential. dtheta is the integrand in Equation 14. um is a list of roots
L2 2
of the equation bu3 + 2m u + au E = 0, which is simply the polynomial for r1m given in Equation 16. We
want the smallest positive real root (this represents the first time the electron, coming in from infinity, is
reflected by the potential barrier), so um2 is a list of real roots, while um3 is a list of only positive roots. If
um3 is empty, this indicates the electron never encounters a potential barrier, and so spirals in; we therefore
return NaN (Not a Number). Otherwise, we select the smallest root in the list (the list is in decreasing order,
so we want um3 [1], the last item) and integrate dtheta from 0 to um3 [1]. This returns a list of [integral,
error], so we select the first item, multiply by two, and subtract to get our scattering angle, as discussed
in equation 15.
Finally, thetaround is theta modulo 2, and the last if/else statement converts the range from (0, 2) to
(, ).
In Figure 6, we define g(s) similarly, flipping the sign of b. Note that both f and g recursively call on
each other, but will never enter into a loop (this is what makes the s 0 statement important, rather than
simply s > 0. Otherwise, s = 0 would flip between them)
In Figure 7, we have included a function which takes an impact parameter to a scattering angle for the
pure Coulomb case. The formula used is an exact analytic solution .This can be used when checking for bugs
(for example, setting b=0 in g(s) and seeing if it agrees with h(s)). It also gives a good function to compare
f and g to for order-of-magnitude estimates.

6
 Figure 6: g(s) is implimented.

Figure 7: h(s) is implimented.

Figure 8: We can plot s-vs- for each of f, g, and h.

In Figure 8 is the code for plotting f, g, and h. It comes commented out, since we dont need it often,
but can be uncommented to check for bugs. Figure 9 shows a sample output for Z = 79, E = 46 KeV. Note
the jumps where theta goes from to , or to . Note also the asymtotes followed by empty space;
these represent impact parameters for which the electron spirals in.

Figure 9: s-vs- for f, g, and h.

7
 Figure 10: Calculating cross sections and the Sherman function

Figure 10 shows the code used to generate the scattering cross sections d d
d () and d ()called csup
and csdown in the programand from the cross sections, the Sherman function. First, we create an array
of angles resulting from our random impact parameters for spin-up electrons, called listup. The condition
if not math.isnan(f(s)) filters out values which are not numbers, which speeds computation of the cross
sections. We could define listdown similarly, but to avoid double evaluation, we just set it equal to the
negative of listup (generating the arrays takes up the majority of the computing time, so this nearly halves
the runtime).
dtht is the width d we consider when approximating the cross sections. A larger width means greater
precision but less accuracy for the same number of random points. Typically, we want a small d and a large
number of points; however, for quick calculations, it may be useful to use a large d and a smaller number
of points.
csup and csdown are calculated as one would expect: we count the number of points within .5d of .
We dont divide by d, sin() or the total number of incoming points, since this just needlessly complicates
the code and can lead to rounding errors. Note that all of these will cancel when calculating the Sherman
function.

Figure 11: Creating the arrays.

In Figure 11 we create arrays to plot. domain is an array of values, while shermanvals is an array of
S() values. We also include a plot from Holzwarth and Meister for comparison; angles is the array values
given, while shermanhm is an array of predicted values for the Sherman function.

Figure 12: Plotting S().

In Figure 12 is the code used for drawing the axis and plotting both our computed values of S() (in
blue) and the predicted values in Holzwarth and Meister (in green). A sample plot is given in Figure 13 with
100000 points in rand1, Z=79, E=46 KeV, thetamin=.5, dtht = .02. Note how jumpy it is: this indicates
we need to either increase the number of points or increase dtht. However, the large jumps around 0 can be
ignored; since we have set thetamin to .5, we would expect noise below this angle.
A few more things to note about Figure 13. First, after about 1.1 radians in either direction in the
beam is almost perfectly polarized. This is because, looking back at figure 9, we see that spin-up electrons
never scatter above 1.1 radians, while spin-down electrons never scatter below -1.1 radians. They can loop
around the entire molecule at very low s-values, but since low s-values dont contribute as much to the overall
cross section, we find this barely affects our polarization. Second, the polarization jump happens precisely
where the Holzwarth and Meister data changes sign. This indicates that this sign change can be explained
classically.

8
 Figure 13: Calculating cross sections and the Sherman function

3.2 The noncentral force program

3.2.1 Finding the scattering angle
In full generality, as derived in Section 2, at any given point in the trajectory a spin-up electron feels a force
x Cmh y y Cmh x
F~ (~r) = (A + ,A ) (17)
(x2 + y 2 )3/2 2 (x2 + y 2 )3/2 (x2 + y 2 )3/2 2 (x2 + y 2 )3/2

From F~ = m~a we have a pair of coupled, second order differential equations for x(t) and y(t):

A x Ch y A y Ch x
x = 2 2 3/2
+ y = + (18)
m (x + y ) 2 (x + y 2 )3/2
2 2 2
m (x + y ) 3/2 2 (x + y 2 )3/2
2

These equations, paired with initial conditions, will be sufficient to numerically compute the trajectory.
We want our initial conditions to correspond to firing an electron from far away in the +y direction. For an
electron with energy E and impact parameter s, these are
r
2E
x(0) = s y(0) = R x = 0 y = (19)
m
where R is large compared to the dimensions of the problem.
After numerically integrating this to some much later time tf , we then have x(tf ), y(tf ), x(tf ), and x(tf ).
Many programming languages come with a special tan1 function, designed to have a range from to ;
x(t )
if one is not available, it is simple to create by cases. Using this, and the ratio y(tff ) we can calculate the
x(tf ) x(tf ) x(tf )
scattering angle. We could also use y(tf ) , since both y(tf ) and y(tf ) converge to the inverse of the slope of
x(tf )
the line as tf ; however, y(tf ) converges much faster. We then have a process to take s to .

3.2.2 Details of program operation

In this section, we again go through the code chunk by chunk, explaining each parts purpose and how to
properly use the code.
In Figure 14, we begin by clearing previously stored values for x, y, and t, importing all relevant packages,
and setting our constants. Most constants are the same as in the central force program. Energy is renamed

9
 Figure 14: Setting all constants.

energy instead of E, since Mathematica uses E to denote Eulers constant. b is set to Cmh
2 , so we can
just write b( ry3 , rx3 ) for the spin-orbit force.
fd is the distance from which we will fire the electron, represented by R in the section above. Its set
to 100 times the maximum impact parameter. We could set it to be larger, but beyond this point increases
dont seem to noticably affect results. tmax is the time tf after which well evaluate the slope; weve set it
to the time needed to travel twice fd at the initial speed. Again, we could make it larger, but this does not
seem to affect results.

Figure 15: Defining F [s].

In Figure 15 we impliment F[s]. f[s] takes an impact parameter and creates a set of functions solving x,
y(t )
y, x, and y. F[s] then evaluates tan1 ( x(tff ) ), with a range of (, ).

Figure 16: Defining G[s] and H[s].

In Figure 16 we impliment G[s] similarly. We also include H[s], the function for the pure Coulomb case.
We graph all of these in Figure 17, where purple is spin-up, blue is spin-down, and grey is pure Coulomb.
Note that the spin up electrons still have the same crest at around 1.1 radians, but the spin-down electrons
dont go asymtotically to infinity, and are never captured by the nucleus (despite what I may have suggested
offhandedly in a meeting). Note also the jumps where goes from to , or to .
In Figure 18 we generate a list of both positive and negative impact parameters, distributed as s2 , and
label it rtot. We can adjust the number of impact parameters generated; it is currently set to 50, as the
program is fairly slow, but for accurate readings it should be set much higher. We then create lists of the
values of resulting from our list of impact parameters. variateup is the list of angles from our spin up
electron; variatedown, again, is just the negative of variateup.
Finally, in Figure 19 we define the cross sections csup and csdown as we did for the central force program.
sherman is then defined as usual, sherman csupcsdown
csup+csdown .

3.2.3 Current issues

The noncentral program is currently far too slow to create an accurate Sherman function. Calculating
each trajectory takes about 2 seconds, meaning that if we generate 200,000 s-values as we did for the central

10
 Figure 17: Plotting F[s] (purple), G[s] (blue), and H[s] (grey)

Figure 18: Defining G[s] and H[s].

Figure 19: Defining the Sherman function.

program, it would take about five days to run. While this isnt prohibitively long, it is certainly inconvenient,
especially when attempting to debug the code. It is possible that using a different programming language
would lead to a faster runtime, depending on how efficient the differential equation tools in that language
are. Another possible fix is to evaluate the program at, say, 200 evenly spaced points, and then create an
interpolated function to use for the random s-values. Since interpolated functions evaluate in fractions of a
second, this would cut the runtime down by a few orders of magnitude.

4 Attempts at analytic solutions

We first note the following equation for the scattering cross section, derived in Goldstien, chapter 3.

d s() ds
() = | | (20)
d sin() d
Note that this formula requires having s as a function of and not as a function of s as we have in our
computer programs above.

11
4.1 Exact solution
The exact solution would mean determining the trajectory
A x Ch y A y Ch x
x = + y = + (21)
m (x2 + y 2 )3/2 2 (x2 + y 2 )3/2 m (x2 + y 2 )3/2 2 (x2 + y 2 )3/2
either by solving as a function of time or by somehow expressing x as a function of y. I have no idea how to
approach this besides endless algebra manipulation.

4.2 The central force approximation

As discussed in Section 3.1, we can approximate the spin-orbit force as a central force. In this case, the
electron moves in a potential of the form
A CLh
V (r) = (22)
r 2r3

where A and C are as given in Section 1, L = s 2mE is the angular momentum of the electron, and (+) is
used for spin up, () for spin down. Additionally, for any central force, we can use a formula from Goldstein
to determine the trajectory:
Z 1/r
du
(r) = q 1
(23)
0 2mE 2mV ( u )
L2 L2 u2
where we have again used to denote the polar angle of a point in space, so as not to confuse it with , the
scattering angle.
As in Section 3.1, we have
Z 1/rm
du
(s) = 2 q 1
(24)
0 2mE 2mV ( u )
L2 L2 u2
1
where rm satisfies
L2 1 2 1 CLh 1 3
E= ( ) +A ( ) (25)
2m rm rm 2 rm
This is theoretically solvable; r1m can be found using the cubic equation, while the integral for is an
elliptic integral. However, these solutions involve prohibitive amounts of algebra.

4.2.1 A failed attempt

d
A compelling but ultimately incorrect approach stems from a derivation of d for Coulomb scattering given
in Goldstien. I will reproduce the argument here, explaining its mistakes, to steer the reader away from this
line of investigation.
ds
Using Equation 20, we can see that it is sufficient to solve for d . If we define r r1m , we can then write

12
 Figure 20: Quantities used in the impulse approximation

R r du
(s) = 2 0
r
2mE 2mV ( 1 )
L2
L2 u u2
d d
R r du
dr = 2 dr 0
r
2mE 2mV ( 1 )
L2
L2 u u2
d ds d
R r du
ds dr = 2 dr 0
r
(26)
2mE 2mV ( 1 )
L2
L2 u u2
 R r 1
ds d du ds
d = 2 dr 0
r
dr
2mE 2mV ( 1 )
L2
L2 u u2
 1
ds 1 ds
d = 2 q 2mE 2mV (r) dr
L2
L2 r 2

d
R r du 1
The problem comes in the last step; dr 0
r 6= q
2mV (r)
. For a function of two
2mE 2mV ( 1 ) 2mE
L2 r 2
L2
L2 u u2 L2

variables, the fundamental theorem of calculus becomes

Z y Z y
d dF
F (x, y)dx = F (y, y) + (x, y)dx (27)
dy y0 y0 dy

d
R r du
In our case, our integrand dr 0
r
1
doesnt depend on just u, but on our limit of integration
2mE 2mV ( )
L2
L2 u u2
r as well. It is not immediately apparent, because the dependence is buried in the L, but for a fixed energy,
changing the distance of closest aproach (rm ) must change the angular momentum. Thus, this method will
ds
not work to calculate d .

4.3 The impulse approximation

As a rough estimate of the scattering angle, we can calculate the impulse (the integral of the force over
the trajectory) delivered to an electron moving past a nucleus in a straight line at a constant speed. Since
p = F~ (t), we can approximate the change in momentum by this impulse, and thus approximate the exit
R
~
angle.
Consider a spin-up electron travelling at velocity ~v = (0, v0 ) past the nucleus in a straight line, at a
perpendicular distance of s, as shown in Figure 20. Position is given by ~r(t) = (s, v0 t), and at any given
point ~r,
s Cmh v0 y
F~ (~r) = (A + ,A ) (28)
(s2 + y 2 )3/2 2 (s2 + y 2 )3/2 (s2 + y 2 )3/2
Therefore, we can approximate the change in momentum by

13
 Figure 21: (s) (left) and s() (right). Note that s() is made of two functions, in green and blue.

R
p
~
F~ (~r(t))dt
R v0 v0 t
=
(A (s2 +vs2 t2 )3/2 + Cmh
2 (s2 +v02 t2 )3/2 , A (s2 +v02 t2 )3/2 )dt
0
R v0
=
(A (s2 +vs2 t2 )3/2 + Cmh
2 (s2 +v02 t2 )3/2 , 0)dt
(29)
0
R As Cmh
= ([ + 2 ] (s2 +t12 )3/2 , 0)dt
v0

= ([ As
v0 +
Cmh 2
2 ] s2 , 0)

Now, the initial momentum of the particle is (0, mv0 ), so the final momentum is then ([ As Cmh 2
v0 + 2 ] s2 , mv0 ),
resulting in a scattering angle of
 A Cmh 
= tan1 (30)
Es 2mEs2
We can invert the equation, to find that
A Cmh
tan()s2 + s+ =0 (31)
E 2mE
and so by the quadratic formula,
q
A A2 4Cmh tan()
E E2
2mE
s= (32)
2 tan()
This indicates two things: first; for most values, there are two impact parameters which will produce ;
second, for certain angles there are no impact parameters which will produce . For an impact parameter
to exist, we must have

A2 4Cmh tan()
E2
2mE
0
A2 4Cmh tan()
E2
2mE
(33)
A2 2mE
4CmhE 2 tan()

1 A2 2mE
tan ( 4CmhE 2 ) 2
In Figure 21 we plot of (s) and s() for a spin-up electron. Note that s() is in fact a composite plot,
with two functions stiched together to create the overall curve.
Lets label the two pieces of s() for spin up electrons s1 () and s2 ().

14
Figure 22: A Sherman function for Z=79, E=46 KeV, using the impulse approximation. Calculated in blue,
predicted in green.

q
A A2 4Cmh tan()
E + E 2

s1 = 2mE
q 2 tan() (34)
A A2 4Cmh tan()
E E 2

s2 = 2 tan()
2mE

Similarly, we have for spin down electrons,

q
A A2 4Cmh tan()
E + E 2+

s1 = 2mE
q 2 tan() (35)
A A2 4Cmh tan()
E E 2+

s2 = 2 tan()
2mE

Then Goldsteins derivation of Equation 20 can be generalized to

d s1 ()  ds1  s2 ()  ds2 
() = + (36)
d sin() d sin() d
  

Now,
q
4Cmh A A2 4Cmh A
ds csc()[ sec()+2 csc() E ( E 2 2mE tan() E )]

2mE
d
1
= q
A2 4Cmh
4 E2 tan()
2mE q
A2
ds csc()[ 4Cmh
sec()+2 csc() EA
( E 4Cmh
A
2 2mE tan() E )]
2mE
d
2
= q
A2 4Cmh
4 E2 tan()
2mEq
A2
(37)
ds csc()[ 4Cmh
sec()+2 csc() EA
( E 4Cmh A
2 + 2mE tan() E )]

2mE
d
1
= q
A2 4Cmh
4 E 2 + 2mE tan()

q
4Cmh A A2 4Cmh A
ds csc()[
2mE
sec()+2 csc() E ( E 2 + 2mE tan() E )]

d
2
= q
A 2 4Cmh
4 E 2+
tan()
2mE

Using these equations for Z=79, E=46 KeV results in the Sherman function shown in Figure 22. The
calculated Sherman function is shown in blue, while the predicted Sherman function is shown in green.
Notice that in this impulse approximation, there are no electrons scattered past 2 . Note also that while
the results dont qualitatively match the predicted values, they at least give a good order-of-magnitude
estimate of the effect.

15
 The tails in the figure, near 1, are the angles to which only spin-up or spin-down electrons can scatter
to. Recall that for spin-up electrons,
2

1 A 2mE
tan ( ) (38)
4CmhE 2 2
Similarly for spin down electrons,

1 A2 2mE
tan ( ) (39)
4CmhE 2 2
2

Therefore, tan1 ( A 2mE
4CmhE 2 ) should abruptly become completely spin-up polarized, while

1 A2 2mE
tan ( 4CmhE 2 ) should become abruptly spin-down polarized. Thus despite appearances, the tails are not
the result of a rounding/zero-over-zero computing error, but should be expected.

4.3.1 A second impulse approximation

We could do a more accurate estimation by integrating the force over the Coulomb trajectory rather than
simply straight lines. This calculation is more complex, and in fact it may not lend itself to analytic solutions
(I havent found one yet). I will outline the integrals needed here; the interested reader may try to solve
them. Note that, in this case, we integrate only the spin-orbit force, since the Coulomb force has already
been accounted for by the change in trajectory.
The equations of motion for a Coulomb trajectory can be derived easily from the Lagrangian L =
1
2 m( r2 + r2 2 ) Ar . They are
mr2 = L
A
mr = mr2 + r2
(40)
2
L A
= mr 3 + r2

By standard computations, we can find the trajectory r(). See chapter 3 of Goldstein.
r
L2 1 2EL2
r() = , e= 1+ (41)
mA 1 + e cos() mA2
R
The integral of the spin-orbit force over this trajectory, F~ (~r(t))dt, will approximate the momentum
change due to the spin-orbit force. Note that the trajectory above does not provide ~r as a function of time,
but rather simply gives the path the particle follows. However, we can avoid calculating ~r(t) by the following
trick:
R
~
p =
F~ (~r(t))dt
R
=
F~ (r(t), (t))dt
R
=
F~ (r((t)), (t))dt (42)
R cos1 (1/e) F~ (r(),)
= cos1 (1/e)
d
R cos1 (1/e) mr2 F~ (r(),)
= cos1 (1/e) L d
L
since = mr ~
2 for the Coulomb force. We then merely need to express F in terms of through substitution,
2~
and integrate r F over . This should give a much better estimation of the Sherman function (it certainly
wont cut off at 2 ).

16
 Figure 23: Vectors used in calculating the Born approximation.

5 The Born approximation

5.1 First Born wave function
1


Let represent a two-component spinor, = . The Schrodinger equation for energy E can be written
2

2 2 2m 2mE
( + k ) = 2 V , k= (43)
h h
This can be converted into an integral equation via a Greens function. The result is then
~0
eik|~rr | ~0
Z
m
(~r) = (~r) V (r )(r~0 )d3 r~0 (44)
2h2 |~r r~0 |
ikx

where (~r) = eeikx is the unpolarized incoming wavefunction. The first Born approximation is given by
plugging in for inside the integral.
~0
eik|~rr | ~0
Z
m
1 (~r) = (~r) V (r )(r~0 )d3 r~0 (45)
2h2 |~r r~0 |
In scattering, we are only interested in the asymtotic behavior of the wave function. For r >> r0 ,
k|~r r~0 | kr ~kb r~0 , |~r1r~0 | 1r , where ~kb = kr ~r. Then,
~
eikr eikb ~
r
m
V (r~0 )(r~0 )d3 r~0
R
1 (~r) (~r) 2h2 r
(46)
eikr m
R i~k ~r
= (~r) r 2h2 e b V (r~0 )(r~0 )d3 r~0

5.2 Solving the first Born approximation

A C
We need to evaluate the integral in equation 46 for the Mott scattering potential, V (~r) = r + r 3 L S.

~ ~
eikb ~r V (r~0 )(r~0 )d3 r~0 eikb ~r [ Ar + rC3 L S](r~0 )d3 r~0
R R
=
R ei~kb ~r 1
3 R ei~kb ~r (47)
~0 1
d3 r~0


= A r 2 d r + C r3 L S 2

We want to evaluate each of these integrals. First, we define a few vectors and constants. Let ~ka = kx
be the wavevector for the incident wave. Let ~q = ~kb ~ka , so then |~q| q = 2k sin( 2 ). Finally, let be the
angle between ~q and y, so that = 2 . All of these quantities are illustrated in Figure 23.

17
 ~ ~
eikb ~
r
er eikb ~r
1
d3 r~0 1 3 ~0
R
R

A r 2 = A lim0 r 2 d r
R er ei~kb ~r eikx
3
= A lim0 ~0
r eikx d r
R er ei~q~r 1
3
= A lim0 ~0
r 1 d r
R R R 2
A lim0 0 0 0 r sin()er eiqr cos() 11 dddr


=
RR1
2A lim0 0 1 rer eiqru 11 dudr


=
R r iqr (48)
2iA
eiqr ) 11 dr


= q lim0 0 e (e
R r
4A
sin(qr) 11 dr


= q lim0 0 e
4A q 1


= q lim0 q 2 +2 1
4A 1


= q2 1
A 1


= k2 sin2 ( 2 ) 1

~ ~
eikb ~
r
eikb ~r
1
d3 r~0 [Lx Sx + Ly Sy + Lz Sz ] 12 d3 r~0
R
R

C r3 L S 2 = C r3
R ei~kb ~r
Ch
[Lx 21 + iLy 1 ~0



3
= 2 r3 1 + Lz 2 ]d r
2

~ ikx ikx
eikb ~ r
eikx
Ch
[Lx eeikx + iLy e ~0
R


3
= 2 r3 eikx + Lz eikx ]d r
(49)
2 i~ kb ~
r ikx
ikx

Ch k e
[iz e e 3 ~0
R
= 2 r3 eikx y eikx ]d r
i~
q ~
r
Ch2 k 1 zei~q ~
r
d3 r~0 + ye r3 d3 r~0 )

R R
= 2 1 (i r3

Now, simple examination reveals

zei~q~r 3 ~0
Z
d r =0 (50)
r3
and using cylindrical coordinates, we have
2
yei~
q ~
r R R 2 R
d3 r~0 2 0 0 (2 +z sin() iq sin()
R
r3 = e dzdd
R R 2 2 )3/2
z 2 iq sin()
= sin()e dd

0 0 2 2 +z 2 
R R 2
= 2 0 0 sin()eiq sin() dd
R R 2
= 2 0 0 sin( + )eiq sin() dd
R R 2
= 2 0 0 [sin() cos() + sin() cos()]eiq sin() dd
R R 2 (51)
= 2 0 0 [cos() sin()eiq sin() + sin() cos()eiq sin() ]dd
R R 2
= 2 0 0 sin() cos()eiq sin() dd
R
= 4i cos() 0 J1 (q)d
4i cos()
= q
2i cot( 2 )
= k

so that plugging Equations 50 and 51 into Equation 49 gives

~
eikb ~r
Z    
1 3 ~0 2 1
C L S d r = iCh cot( ) (52)
r3 2 2 1
and the total integral from Equation 47 is

18
 Z  A
k2 sin2 ( 2 )
+ Cih2 cot( 2 )
i~
e kb ~
r
V (r~0 )(r~0 )d3 r~0 = (53)
A
k2 sin2 ( 2 )
Cih2 cot( 2 )

Thus, Equation 46 for 1 far from the nucleus becomes

eikr m A csc2 ( 2 ) + Cik 2 h2 cot( 2 )

 
1 (~r) (~r) (54)
r 2k 2 h2 A csc2 ( 2 ) Cik 2 h2 cot( 2 )

5.3 Calculating the Sherman function

ikr A csc2 (/2)+Cik2 h2 cot(/2)

The Sherman function is calculated from the scattering wave function, s (~r) = e r m
2k2 h2 A csc2 (/2)Cik2 h2 cot(/2)
,
hs |z |s i
by S() = hs |s i . Now,

m2 A csc2 (/2)Cik2 h2 cot(/2)
2 2 2

A csc (/2)+Cik h cot(/2)


hs | z |s i = 4r 2 k4 h4 A csc2 (/2)+Cik2 h2 cot(/2) z A csc2 (/2)Cik2 h2 cot(/2)
m2 A csc2 (/2)Cik2 h2 cot(/2)
A csc2 (/2)+Cik2 h2 cot(/2)

= 4r 2 k4 h4 A csc2 (/2)+Cik2 h2 cot(/2) A csc2 (/2)+Cik2 h2 cot(/2)
(55)
= 0
so that S() = 0 in the first Born approximation.

5.4 A simpler approach to the first Born calculation

In the derivation above, we explicitly solved each integral. However, we can find S() = 0 by simpler
methods.
ikr R ~
Note first that the scattered wavefunction is a multiple of e r eikb ~r V (r~0 )(r~0 )d3 r~0 . The integral can
be separated into two parts:
~ Z i~kb ~r
eikb ~r 1 3 ~0
Z Z    
i~ e 1 3 ~0
e kb ~
r
V (r~0 )(r~0 )d3 r~0 = A d r +C 3
L S d r (56)
r 2 r 2
Now,
~
eikb ~r 1 3 ~0
   
cos(~q ~r) i sin(~q ~r) 1 3 ~0
Z Z
A d r =A d r (57)
r 2 r 1
q ~
Since sin(~
r
r)
is an odd function, integrating over all space gives zero. Thus the integral results in some
real value, call it a. Similarly,
~
eikb ~r Ch2 k 1 zei~q~r 3 ~0 yei~q~r 3 ~0
Z     Z Z
1 3 ~0
C 3
L S d r = (i 3
d r + d r) (58)
r 2 2 1 r r3
R i~q~r
Now, ze r3 d3 r~0 = 0 since the integral over the z > 0 half-space is the negative of the integral over the
z < 0 half-space. Furthurmore, we have

yei~q~r 3 ~0 y(cos(~q ~r) i sin(~q ~r)) 3 ~0

Z Z
d r = d r (59)
r3 r3
and since y cos()
r3 is an odd function, the integral results in some purely imaginary value, call it ib. The
scattering wavefunction is then

eikr a ib
 
s = (60)
r a + ib

19
and we have
eikr a+ib eikr aib



hs | z |s i = r aib z r a+ib
1 a+ib

aib

= r 2 aib aib
(61)
1 2
= r 2 (a + b2 a2 b2 )
= 0

20