Numerical computation of isotropic Compton scattering

TL;DR

This paper develops an accurate and efficient numerical method for computing the isotropic Compton scattering cross section, addressing accuracy issues in astrophysical plasma simulations and enabling precise modeling of photon-electron interactions.

Contribution

It derives an exact, numerically stable form of the isotropic Compton cross section and evaluates methods for solving related kinetic equations in astrophysical contexts.

Findings

The new cross section formula avoids numerical cancellations.

The combined method improves accuracy and speed in kinetic equation solutions.

The approach is effective across all relevant photon and electron energies.

Abstract

Compton scattering is involved in many astrophysical situations. It is well known and has been studied in detail for the past fifty years. Exact formulae for the different cross sections are often complex, and essentially asymptotic expressions have been used in the past. Numerical capabilities have now developed to a point where they enable the direct use of exact formulae in sophisticated codes that deal with all kinds of interactions in plasmas. Although the numerical computation of the Compton cross section is simple in principle, its practical evaluation is often prone to accuracy issues. These can be severe in some astrophysical situations but are often not addressed properly. In this paper we investigate numerical issues related to the computation of the Compton scattering contribution to the time evolution of interacting photon and particle populations. An exact form of the isotropic Compton cross section free of numerical cancellations is derived. Its accuracy is investigated and compared to other formulae. Then, several methods to solve the kinetic equations using this cross section are studied. The regimes where existing cross sections can be evaluated numerically are given. We find that the cross section derived here allows for accurate and fast numerical evaluation for any photon and electron energy. The most efficient way to solve the kinetic equations is a method combining a direct integration of the cross section over the photon and particle distributions and a Fokker-Planck approximation. Expressions describing this combination are given.