UNIT 8 SCATTERING

Structure
8.1 Introduction
Objectives

8.2 Scattering Cross-Sections

Differential Cross-Section
Total Cross-Section
Laboratory and Centre-of-massF m e s of Reference
Relations Between Angles and Scattering Cross-Sections in the Lab and C.M. Frames of Reference

8.3 Impact Parameters

Elastic Scattering of Two Hard Spheres
Rutherford,Scattenng

8.4 Summary
8.5 Terminal Questions
8.6 Answers

8.1 INTRODUCTION

In Unit 7 you have learnt to apply the concepts of mechanics to many-particie systems. You
are familiar with the phenomenon of collisions, which you have studied in Unit 3. It is also
called scattering. In this unit we intend to study scattering in more detail. As you know, it
involves two or more particles interacting with each other for a brief time. Collisions of
particles or scattering of particles is an important feature of our physical universe. On a
larger scale, we wonder if the earth's collision with an asteroid led to the extinction of
dinosaurs. Galaxies also collide with each other giving rise to new formations. Much of our
knowledge of atomic and nuclear smcture and elementary particles comes from scattering
experiments. These microscopic bodies are bombarded with microscopic particles and the
number of particles scattered in various directions is measured. The angular distribution of
scattered particles is expressed in terms of scattering cross-sections.
In this unit we shall begin our discussion with scattering cross-sections. The cross-sections
are calculated in the centre-of-massframe of reference but experimentally determined in the
laboratory frame of reference. So you will study these two frames of reference and determine
the relationship of the relevant physical quantities as observed from each of them. The
impact parameter method makes the study of many a scattering phenomenon fairly easy. So
you will learn this method and study two of its applications, namely, scattering of two hard
spheres and Rutherford scattering. Rutherford scattering is one of the most dramatic
scattering experiments. Performed in 191 1by Geiger and Marsden it led to the nuclear model
of the atom, In Unit 9 you will learn to apply the concepts of mechanics to the rotational
motion of rigid bodies.

Objectives
After studying this unit you should be able *to
e distinguish ktween the c.m. and laboratory frames of reference
e compute differential and total scattering'cross-sections in c.m. and laboratory frames of
iefenmce
apply the impact parameter method to'salvc problems boned on elastic scattering of two ,
._.-.
~ Rutherford scattering,
hard s p h e Mb
 Scattering
8.2 SCATTERING CROSS-SECTIONS

You already know what a collision or scattering of particles is. Recall the collision of two
particles with which you are familiar (see Sec.-3.4). We can identify three distinct stages in
the entire scattering process. We show these three stages of the collision process in Fig. 8.1.
The first stage shown in Fig. 8.la, corresponds to a time long before the interaction of the
colliding particles. At this stage each particle is effectively free, i.e. its energy is positive.
As the particles approach each other (Fig. 8.lb), interaction forces muih larger than any
other force acting on them come into play. Finally, long after the interaction (Fig. 8.lc), the
emerging particles are again free and move along straight lines with new velocities in new
directions. The emerging particles may or may not be the same as the original particles. .

(a) (b) (c)

Pig. 8.1: Scattering of two particles

In a typical scattering experiment, a parallel beam of particles, also called projectiles, of

given energy and momentum is incident upon a target (Fig. 8.2). The particles interact with
the target for a short time, which deflects or scatters them in various directions. Evehtually,
these particles are detected at large distances from the target. The scattered particles may or
may not have the same energies and momenta.

incident beam

\\ scattered beam

Fig. 8.i: A typical scattering process

j
An experimenter may be interested in knowing the velocities, linear momenta and energies
of the particles before and after scattering. Then the changes brought about in these quantities
can be determined. As you have studied in Unit 3, the principles of conservation of linear
momentum and total energy allow us to determine these parameters. For example, James
Chadwick discovered the neutron by making use of similar information about scattering of
these unknown particles. When a beam of these particles was bombarded on the hydrogenous
material paraffin, the protons had maximum recoil velocity of 3.3 x 10 'rn s-I, When these
were bombarded on the nitrogenous material para-cyanogen, the maximum recoil velocity of
citrogen nuclei was 4.7 x lo6m s-I. Using the methods you have studied in Unit 3, the
2 '
mass of these particles was calculated and it was found to be a totally different and new
!
particle, the neutron. AI
 '
Systems of Particles There is another aspect of interest in scattering. We may want to know how likely a
particle's motion in a given direction is, after its interaction with the target. In other words,
we may want to know the probability of scattering in a given direction. This is important .
because it gives us information about the nature of force between the projectiles and the
target, and also their internal structures. For example, the size of the electron was determined
by electron-electron scattering experiments. Similarly, electron-atom scattering experiments
give us information about the internal structure of the target atom, i.e. their energy levels,
configurations etc. The probability of scattering in a given direction is found by determining
the scattering cross-sections. Let us now define the scattering cross-sections for a
typical scattering process.
detectc
1

- .
scattering plane

\
\
\

'.
?\
\
I
\ /'
', ,'
H
,'

>-
\
.
I incident o1 target Z

dA (a) (b)

Fig. 8.3: (a) Schematic diagram of a scattering event showing' the angles (0.4);(b) di-2 is the solid angle about
. the angle (9, 9). The parllcles scattered into the solid angle dQ are received by the detector. CIAis the cross-sectional
area of the detector.
In
Let us suppose that a uniform parallel beam of rt particles, all of the same mass and energy,
is incident upon a target containing N number of identical particles or scattering centres.
Such scattering centres might, for example, be the positive nuclei of atoms in a thin metal
foil which could be bombarded by cl particles. Let us assume that the particles in the beam
do not interact with each other and the scattering centres in the target are sufficiently far
apart. With these assumptions we can regard the incident particles and target particles to be
sufficiently far apart. Then we can think of this scattering event as if at a given time only
one projectile was being scattered by one target particle, without being affected by the .
presence of other particles. So, effectively at any instant we deal with a two-body collision
Fig. 8.4:(a) Let the surface of area
process. For convenience we choose the origin of the coordinate system at the position of
dA be bounded by a closed curve the target and one of the axes, say z-axis, in the direction of the incident beam.
shown in the figure. The lines from
the point 0 to the polnts of C The direction of scattering is given by the angles @,I$) as shown in Fig. 8.3a. The angle 8,
generate a cone. NOW visual~sethe called the angle of scattering, is the angle between the scattered and the incident directions.
area of a unit sphere about 0 (or the These two directions define the plane of scattering. The &$le I$ specifies the orientation of
area of a sphere of radius r about 0.
divided by r 2). This area intercepted this plane with respect to some reference plane containing the z-axis. The shaded plane in
by the cone is the solid anele Fig. 8.3a is a reference plane. The probability of the scattering of a particle in a given
sibtended at 0 by the p o r t i o n d ~ i f direction (8,$)is measured in terms of the differential cross-section. So let us understand
the sphcre's surface, enclosg by C. what it is.
You can think of the solid angle as
the space enclosed by a cone. The
measure of a solid angle is defined as
8.2.1 Differential Cross-Section
thesubtendedarea(dA)tO Let F be the number of projectiles incident per unit area per unit time on the target. F
dA
the radius (r)squared, i.e, dn = , 2 -. represents the incident flux. Let An be the number of particles scattered into a small solid
Its unit is called steradian(sr1. You angle dQ about the angle (8,$) in time At(Fig. 8.3b). Study Fig.8.4a and read its caption
can see that it plays the same for carefully to understand what a solid angle is. Then the number of scattered particles by a
a sphere as the angle (in radians) for a
(b) as you know an single target particle in time At, must be proportional to the incident flux F, the duration At
the plane is the space between two and also the solid angle in which they are scattered, i.e.
intersecting lines. The measure of an
angle, in radians. iq defined as the An = F (dQ)(At). (8. i a)
ratio ofthe subtended arc length to
the radius. i.e. 0 = S. The, constant of proportionality is defined a s the differential scattering
Iso write it as dcs, in short. SO
 Scattering
Cross-section literally means (hc
Thus, we can alsb express the differential cross-section as the following ratio : surface formed by cutting through
something, especially at right angles.
do - Thinumber of particles scattered per unit time in a solid angle dl2 in the clirection (9,@) Areas, as you know, arepssocialed
-
a - Incident flux, i.e. the number of particles incident on the target per unit area per unit time. with surfaces.
You can see that defined as a ratio like this, the differential cross-section (dcs) gives a
probability. In fact, it is a measure of the probability that an incident particle will be
do
scattered in solid angle d f i in the direction (0,$).You can also see that - has the dimension
dS1
of area. This explains the use of the term 'cross-section'. Therefore, it can also be thought of
do
as the 'effective' area offered by the scatterer to the incident particle. More precisely, - i s
dil
equal to the cross-sectional area of the incident beam that contains the number of particles
scattered into the solid angle dS1 by a single target particle. The unit oMcs is m2 sr -I. The
dcs depends only on the parameters of the incident particle, nature of the target and the nature
of the interaction between the two.
So far we have discussed the scattering of particles from a single scattering centre in the
target. For the N scattering centres the number of particles scattered will be just N times the
number scattered by a single scattering centre. Thus for N scattering centres, the number of
particles scattered is
do
An' = - NF d i l At.
dl2
Of course, Eq. 8.lc is valid only when the target scattering centres are far enough apart so
that the same particle is not scattered by two of them. Having defined the differential cross-
section we will introduce you to the total scattering cross-section.

8.2.2 Total Cross-Section

Let hs place the detector at all possible values of (€I,$) and count the total number of
scattered particles entering all the corresponding solid angles. Then we will get the total
scattering cross-section (tcs, in short). It is denoted by o. It can also be calculated
from the differential scattering cross-sections by integrating over all possible values of dS1.
Thus, .

S o the tcs represents the number of particles scattered in all directions per unit flux of
incident particles. It has the dimension of area. So its unit is m2. Now, we also define the
solid angle subtended by an area to be dl2 = sin0 d 0 d$, where the limits of 8 and $ are 0 to
n and 0 to 2n, respectively. You will learn about these relations in the course on
Mathematical Methods in Physics-I.. If you wish to understand their proofs now, you may
read the last book given in the references. Using these relations we get,
lt a

'
0 0
W e can show that for the cases in which the force is central and its magnitude depends only
do
on I-,- is independent of $ . We will not prove this result here. In such cases, we can
dQ
integrate over $ so that
 Systems o f Particles do
In the discussion that follows, we shall limit ourselves to the cases in which - does not
df2
depend on I$. i.e. it is the same for ail values of 4. We will now work out an example based
on these concepts. Then you may like to work out an SAQ to concretise the concepts you
have just studied.
Example 1
A beam of C1-particles with a flux of 3 x lo8 m-2 s-' strikes a thin foil of aluminium, which
contains 102'atoms. A detector of cross-sectional area 400 mm2 is placed 0.6 m frornthe
wget in a direction at right angles to the direction of the incident beam. If the rate of
detection of a-particles is 8.1 x lo3rl, compute the dcs.
Here we shall use Eq. 8.lc to compute the dcs. It is given that the flux F =,3~10~m-~s-],
An
8=: 90°, the rale of detection of a-particles is -= 8.1 X lo3s-' and the number of target
At
atoms, N = loz1. From Eq. 8.1 c

In this case, di2 is the solid angle subtended by the detector at the target for 9 = 903 You
know from Fig. 8.4a that

where dA is the area of the detector and L , its distance from the target.
(400 x 104)m2
Thus dR = = 1.1 x l W s r ,
(0.6m)2
do 8.1 x 10%-I
Therefore - = = 2 . 4 ~ 1 0 -m~2~s r l
dQ 1 02' x (3x 108m-2s-') x 1. Ix lW3sr
SAQ 1 c.
A beam of neuttons is passed through paraffin. Its incident flux is 5 x 1 0 ' ~rnm2s-'. The dcs is
measured to be 1,5x n ~ ~ satr -an~ angle 60°, Compute the number of particles scattered
per unit time by (1) a single paraffin molecule and (ii) paraffin molecules, into a solid
angle sr,
So far we have defined the dcs and tcs. We would next like to find out how these can be
determined for various scattering processes. To do this we need some additional information
about the cross+,ections. Let us see what it is I
Experimentalists measure these cross-sections in laboratory experiments. Theoretical
physicists make model's of the forces of interaction and calculate these cross-sections.If the
calculated values agree well with the experimental values then those models are held to be
valid.
When a scattering experiment is performed in the laboratory, the target is taken to be at rest.
But for calculating the cross-sections it is easier to use the frame of reference in which the
cam.is at rest because then the two-body problem can be reduced to a one-body problem
(recall Sec. 7.2.1). Then we have to deal with only the relative motion of the target and the
projectile. So the first question is how to compare the measured cross-sections with the
calculated ones ? For this we need to define these frames of reference and determine the
relationship of th.e cross-sections as observed or calculated i n them.

8.2.3 Laboratory and Centre-of-mass Frames of Reference

In the laboratory frame of reference (Fig. 8.5a1, the target pqticle of mass m2 is uken to be
at rest before the collision. It is taken to be situated at 0, the origin of the coordinate
system. Let the projectile of mass m lapproach the target with velocity ul. After collision,
let the two particles have position vectors r,, r2 and velocities v,, v2with respcrt to 0 at
any instant t. From E q 7.2 the position and velocity vectors of the c.m. in the laboratorjl
44 frame of reference after collision, are given by

..a,
 Scattering

since from conservation of linear momentum, m l u l = n11 v l + m 2 v?.

Fig. 8.5: (a) 'The laboratory frame of reference in wliicli the target particle of mass nr? i s initially at rest:
(b) centre-of-mass frame of reference in which the c.m. ( C )is initially and always at rest.

It is convenient to study collisions using the c.m. frame of reference. 4 s you know, in this
frame, the c.m. is initially and always taken to be at rest (Fig. 8.5b). The origin of thc
coordinate system is located at the c.m. Since the c.m. is at rest always, its linear
'
momentum and so the linear momentum of the entire system is zero before and after
collision. Therefore, the c.m. frame of reference is also known as the zero momentum
frame of reference. For the two particle system, let the velocities of the particles in the
c.m. frame of reference be u'l and u'2 before collision. Let their velocities after collision be
v' and v:. Then putting the velocity of c.m. equal to zero, we gel
I -

Thus, the colliding particles have equal and opposite momenta before and after collision in
the c.m. frame of reference. You can see from Eqs. 8.4a and b that for elastic collisions, the
magnitudes of the particles' velocities will remain the same after scattering. In fact, you can
work out this result yourself in the following SAQ.

I SAQ 2
Show that for elastic collisiol~sul' = vl', ui= v i in the c.111.frame of reference. (Hint :
'd
Recall the definition of an elastic collision from Sec. 3.4 of Block I and use the condition of
the conservation of kinetic energy alongwith Eqs. 8.4a and b).
We have specified the laboratory and c.m. frames of reference. W e would now like to
determine the relationship between the angles and the differential scattering cross-sections in
the two frames of.reference. For this, let us look at. Lhe relation between the position and
velocity vectors of the particles after scattering in these two frames of reference.

Recall that we have chosen the incident direction a l o n ~the z-axis. The coorditlates of m l and
m 2as measured from the origin 0 of the Inb system after collision are r l and r,. The c.m.
(C) has the coordinate R with respect to 0.Let rl' and r,' be the coordinates of niland n??
with respect to C after collision. As you know from its definition, the! c.m. lies nn the line 45

1
Systems o t Particles joining ml and m2.Thus r; and r; lie along the same line. So, we can relate the vectors r,,
r2, R, r,' and ri in a vector diagram as shown in Fig. X.6a.

Fig. 8.6: Relation between (a) the position vectors and (h) velocities of the colliding particles in lab and c.m.
frames of reference, after collision.

From Fig. 8.6a we have

rI=R+r; , r2=R+r;
The relative coordinate of particle 1 with respect to palucle L ISrzl= rl - r2. From Eq. 8.5a
you can see that
r2, = rl - r z = r l,- r 2 = r , say.
8
(XSb)

Thus,the separation of the two particles its the same in both frames of reference. Using Eqs.
8.3a, 8.5a and b, we can write r,' and r i ill terms of r:

Differentiating Eq, 8.5a we can relate the velocity vectors in both frames of reference after
scattering :

Similar relations can be derived for the position and velocity vectors d particles 1 and 2
before scattering, so that ,

Since the particle 2 is initially at rest in the lab system, u2= 0 and we have I

Using Eqs. 8.3 to 8.7 we can deterini,ne the relations between the angles of scattering and
scattering cross-sections in the lah~ratoryand c.m. frames of reference.

8.2.4 Relations Between ~ n g l eand

s Scattering {Cross-Sections in the
Lab and C.M. Frarnes of Reference
Let OL and 0,,, be the angles of scattering in the laboratory and c.nr. frames of reference..
respectively (see Fig. 8.6);Resolving Eq. 8.7a into its componen.ts along the i,nitial I-
direction and perpendicular to it (see Fl g. 8.6b), we get
~ q l ~ o ~ 0 1 , =,.,,)I
~t~V ,I ' ~ ~ ~ 1 3 . . (X.Xa)
 Scattering
vlsin el. = I,,' sin f3,.,,

Dividing Eq. 8.8b by, Eq. 8.8a gives

' sin 0,snj sin 8,,,

tan €IL = -- v
C O S e,.,,
I-~,' +v cos ec,, + 7
1

sin e,, v
or tan eL= with y = y .
cos ern1 + y V~

You can see that y is the ratio of the speed of the c.m. in the laboratory system to the speed
of the observed particle in the c.m. system. The value of y can be determined for both elastic
and inelastic scattering: We shall limit ourselves to the case of elastic scattering. Let us find
v
-for elastic scattering.
v,'
y for elastic scattering

You have already shown in SAQ 2 that v,'= u,'. We can obtain u,'in terms of V from Eqs.
8 . 7 ~and 8.3b as follows:

Thus, for elastic scattering

You may now like to apply these relations to solve a problem.

SAQ 3
An experiment is to be designed to measure the differential scattering cross-section for elastic
pion-proton scattering. 1'n the c.m. frame, the scattering angle is 70" and kinetic energy of
the pion is 490 k e ~ ' (The.eY
. is the atomic unit of energy.) F~ndthe corresponding angle in lev = 1.6 x 10-l'~
the lab at which'the scattered pions should be detected and the required lab kinetic energy in
eV of the pion beam. The ratio of pion to proton mass is 117.
. .: , ) *I '

I Lel us now determine ihk relation between the differential scattering cross-sections in the lab
I and c.m. frames of reference. The incident flux F and the number of particles (An) scattered
per unit time in the solid angle dR, will be she same in the laboratory and the c.m. systems.
I
So Eq. 8.la gives us the condition that

We know from Eqs. 8,2a ,and 8.2b that d R = sine de d$. Since we are dealing with
situations in which the cross-sections are independent of $, we can write d4~~,~,=
d q , , . so that
Systems o f Parlicles We can use Eq. 8.9 to sin~plifyEq. 8.1 Ib further as follows:
sine,,,
Since taneL=
COS~,.,, +y
you can verify that
+y
COS eL= ( 1 + y2COS~'.,,
+ 2yc0s0,,,)~'~
and
d(cos OL) - (1 + ~ c o s ~ , , )
~ ( C Oe), S - (1 + y2 + 2y~o~e,,)w2
Thus, we get the relation

It is (%Iflm which is obtained from theory. Eg. 8.1 1c tells us how to transform it to the
-...
laboratory system to compare with experimental data.

m 1 and we get
For elastic scattering, y = -
m2

If the masses of the target and projectile are equal, i.e. m2= m,,then Eq. 8.12 reduces to

I\ The total scattering cross-sections will be the s?me in both the frames of reference.

? - 1°1 \ ; You

SAQ 4
will get some practice on these equations if you work out the following SAQ.

-1 a) The differential scattering cross-sections in a proton-proton elastic scattering experiment

7 10 are measured to be 2.3 X 1 CFZ7m2 s r l and 2.6 x m2 srl at the scattering aegles
s 30' and 60". Find the corresponding quantities in the c.m. frame of reference.
-3
9 1% ( 80 160
b) Fig. 8.7 shows B e variation of the differential cross-section (dcs) with the angle of
scattering for the elastic scattering of electrons by lithium atoms in the c.m. frame of
reference. What is the corresponding curve in the lab system?
0,, (in deg.)
Fig. 8.7 So far we have defmed scattering cross-sections and established the relations between the
scattering angles and cross-sections in the laboratory and c.m. frames of reference. Let us
.now determine the cross-sections for a few scattering processes. One of the methods
commonly used for this purpose is the method involving impact parameters, which we shall
now study,

8,3 IMPACT PARAMETERS

Let us suppose that the projectile does not make a bead-on collision with the target. Instead,
it travels along a path, which if continued in a straight line, would pass the target at a
48 distance b (Fig. 8.88). This, indeed, is the case most of the times. The distance h is known
 as the impact parameter. You can see thal h is the perpendicular distance between the Scattering
projectile's initial path and the target.

(a) (b)
Fig. 8.8: (a) The impact parameter b;(b) thc particles having irnpacl parameters belween h and h + dh are
scattered into angles between 8,, and 8,, + tl8,,,; (c) the scattering angle decreases with ,

increasing impact parameter.

Let us now express the differential scattering cross-sections in terms of the impact parameter.
We will study the scattering process in the c.m. frame of reference with O,,, as the angle of
scattering (Fig. 8.8b). What is the number of particles incident on the target during time A!
having impact parameters between h and b + dh? Let us consider a circular ring having radii
between h and h + dl?. The area of the ring is 2nbdb for infinitesimal values of dh. If the
incident flux is F then,
The number of incident particles having an impact parameter between h and ( h + db)
= F(Ar) (2n h db). (8.14)

Let us suppose that these particles are scattered inlo angles between O,, and 8,, +do,,. The
particles with larger h will be scattered through smaller angles as shown in Fig. 8 . 8 ~ This
.
happens because larger h means lesser interaction, i.e. less scattering. For very large b,
scattering will be minimal and the particles will go almost undeflected in a straight line.
Now in the c.m. frame of reference the number of particles scattered in the solid angle df2 in
time Ar is given from Eq. 8.la as

This is the same as the number of incident particles in time At having impact parameters
between f; and h + db, given by Eq. 8.14, i.e.

I Here we have assumed that is independent of +.Taking into account all values of 4 in
I
d R , we have d Q = 2nsin 8 dQ.The negative sign expresses the fact that as b increases, O,,
decreases, i.e. db and de,, have opposite signs. From Eq. 8.15a we get

h db
(8.15b)

Wc have not written the negative sign in Eq. 8.15b because )_:(-- has the dimension of

arca and it\ mqnitude has to be positive. So, if we know h as a function of scattering angle
8, ,,, we can calculate the differential sc:!ttering cross-section using E q 8 1Sb
Systems of Particles . How do we determine h as a function of e,,? We will not study any general method for
finding h (O,.,l,).Instead, we will study two specific cases, namely, the hard sphere scattering
and Rutherford scattering as applications of Eq. 8.15b.
8.3.1 Elastic Scattering of Two Nard Spheres
Let us consider the elastic scattering of a sphere of mass rn, and radius R by a target sphere
of mass t7Z2 and radius R , (Fig. 8.9a). Let the distance between the centres of the two spheres
at any instant be I.. A

Fig. 8.9: (a) Scattering of lwo hard spheres: (b) the incident hard sphcre rebounds at the same angle as the
incident angle after scattering from the target sphere.

The incident hard sphere will get scattered after rebounding &om the target hard sphere. What
do we mean by the term 'hard sphere'? This means that the spheres cannot penetrate a
distance smaller than R + R,,. So we can say that the force or potential is infinite for
r < (R +I?,). For a distance r > ( R + A,), the spheres are free to move both before and after
the collision, i.e. there is no force be~weenthem. Mathematically we can express such a
situation in terms of a potential V ( r ) such that
V ( I , ) = = for r < ( R + R , J , (8.16)
=0 for r > (R + R,) .
You know that F = - dV . So you can see that the force on the spheres corresponding to
dr
such a potential is iliiinite for r. < ( R + R,) and zero for r. > (R + R,$. This means that the
dL
torque is zero for r > (R + R,). Since the torque = -, the total angular momentum will
dl
remain constant before and after the collision.
Let us now find out the relation between b and 8,,,. Refer to Fig. 8.9b. For an elastic
collision, K.E. is conserved. You have already worked out in SAQ 2 hat for elastic
scattering the target and projectile velocities remain the same before and after collision. Let a
be the angle between the direction of the initial velocity vliof ml and the line joining the
F
centres of the two spheres at the time of impact as shown in ig. 8.9b. Let rl be the
position vector of the centre of sphere of radius R with respect to the centre of sphere of
radius R,T.The magnitude of the angular momentum of ml with respect to the centre of ma
just before the impact is
L,=-rnl/ ( v l i x r l ) I = m l v l i r l s i n ( ~ - a )= m l v l i r l s i n a .
Just after the impact it is
Ll=rn1l ( v l f X rl ) / = r n l v l f r l s i n ~ ~ ~ ~ . ,
Since from SAQ 2, vl, = vy,for elastic scattering we have that
mlvli sin a = mlvli sin LACB, i.e. LACB = a .
Thus, the sphere ml will bounce off the sphere m2 at an angle to the normal, equal to the
incident angle a.So from Fig. 8.9b you can see that

= 7t - 2 ~ .1
8c11, (8.17)
Now, we can'relate the impact parameter b to a using Fig. 8.9b as follows:
 b = r., sina = (R + R,T)sin a Scattering
. .
= (R + R,) sin
-ecm using Eq. 8.17,
7t
-2

or h = (R + R,) cos 80,

2
- (8.18a)

Then from Eq. 8.15b we get the differential scattering cross-section as

h R+R, ocm
sin 3-
sin 0,, 2

h
Using -= R + R, from Eq. 8.18a, we get
eon
cos 7

The total scattering cross-section is

If the projectile is a point particle instead of a sphere, then the total scattering cross-section.
is 7tR; which is the cross-sectional area of the target sphere. You may like to work out hn
.SAQ applying the ideas of this section.
SAQ 5
A beam of point particles strikes a wall. Each atom in the wall behaves like a sphere of
radius 3 x lV15m. Th mass of each particle is much less than that of an atom. What is the
7
dcs, tcs and the impact parameter of the particles entering a detector placed at an angle of 60"
to the direction of the beam?

Let us now study another application of Eq. 8,15b, namely the Rutherford scattering.

8.3.2 Rutherford Scattering

The Rutherford scattering experiment was an important milestone in understanding the
structure of the atom. Until the early twentieth century Thomson's plum pudding model of
the atom was believed to be valid. J.J. Thomson had proposed, in 1898, that atoms were
uniform spheres of positively charged matter in which electrons were embedded (Fig. 8.10a).
It was almost 13 years later that a definite experimental test of this model was made. Now,
the most direct way to find out what is inside a plum pudding is to plunge a finger into it! A
similar technique was used in the classic experiment performed in 1911, by Geiger and
Fig. 8.10: (a) ~homson'splum
Marsden who were working with Lord Rutherford. They bombarded thin foils of various pudding model of the atom;(b)
materials with a-particles (helium nuclei) and recorded the angular distribution of the Rutherford's nuclear model.
scattered a- particles (see Fig. 8.1 1).
 .-ystems o f Particles

zinc sulfide screen

.'
lead screen

Fig. 8.11 Rutherford scattering experiment. A source of a-particles is placed behind a lead screen with a small
hole, so that a narrow beam is directed at a thin metallic foil. A movable zinc sulphide screen is
placed at the other side of the foil. When an a-particle slrikes the screen il gives off a flash oC light.

The thickness of the foils used by It was found that most of the a-particles pass through the foil (i.e. scattering angle 0 < 90").
Geiger and MarYden was of the order
of 1r7,. this with the However, about 1 in 6.17 x lo6 alpha particles was scattered backward, i.e. deflected through
human hair which is about 1+rn in an angle greater than go". This result was unexpected according to Thomson's model. It was
dim*. anticipated that the ALpha panicles would go right through the foil with only slight
deflections. This follows fram the Thomson model. If this model were correct, only weak
electric forces would be exerted on alpha particles passing through a thin metal foil. In :dch
On w i n g these results, Rutherford a case their initial momenta should be enough to make them go through with only I ;.: r
rem&eds "It was 'lmostas incredible deflections. It would indeed need strong forces to cause such considerable dctiectios*,*:!c -
as if you fired a 15-inch shell at a
piece of tissue.paper
. and it came back
particles as were observed.
and hit you."
In order to explain hese results Rutherford proposed a nuclear model of the atom. Using this
model he calculated the dcs. In doing so, he reasoned that the backward scattering could not .
be caused by electrons in the atom, The alpha particles are so much more massive Lhan
electrons that they would hardly be scattered by them. He assumed that the positive kharge in
the atom was concentrated in a very small volume, which he termed Lho nucleus, rather than
being spread out over the volume of the atom. So the scattering of alpi~aparticles was due to
the atomic nucleus. As you know the force of interaction between the a particles and the -
nucleus is simply the repulsive inverse square electrostatic force. On the basis of this model,
Rutherford calculated the differentialcross-sections.

There was a striking agreement between the calculated and observed cross-sections. This
established the nuclear model of the atom, i.e. the positive charge of the atom is concentrate(
in the nucleus, which is surrounded by electrons [Fig. 8.10b).

Let us consider the scattering of a particle carrying charge q by the atomic nuclei having
, charge q'. For this scattering process Rutherford derived the relation between the impact
parameter b and the angIe of scattering O,, to be

b = @ c o em
t---, (8.21)
2 2

where r, =
'
"E~,,,is Qe total mechanical energy of the projectile and the target in
4~ Eo E c m
the c.m, system.

-12 2 -1
Eo is known as he pe&ittivity of free space. Its value is 8.8 x 10 C N m-2.

, The differentialscattering cross-section in the c.m. system for Rutherford scattering is then
-,.-,., given from Eq. 8.15b as .

,b *&b-
 Bern
rO2cot -
- 2 @m
cosec2- *
Bern Bern 2
16 sin -cos -
2 2

8, 94'
= - cosec4 -, where tb = -
2 47% Ecn,

This is the Rutherford scattering cross-section. For scattering of an a-particle by a nucleus of

atomic number Z, qq' = (2e) (Ze) = 2Ze2, where e is the electronic charge. You can see that
the Rutherford scattering cross-section is strongly dependent on both the energy of the
incoming particle and the scattering angle. Also we expect the number of particles scattered
to increase as z2with increasing atomic number. Let us now apply the ideas discussed in
this section to a concrete situation.
Example 2
In one of their experiments on scattering of a-particles, Geiger and Marsden bombarded 7.7
MeV a-particles on a gold target, for which Z = 79. Its atomic weight is 197 amu. Find the
impact parameters and differential scattering cross-sections of the a-particles which are
scattered elastically through angles equal to (i) loo, (ii) 90" and (iii) 150".

It is given here that the K.E.of the incident a-particles in the laboratory system is 7.7 MeV, ' MeV = lo6

i.e. 1.2 x 10-125. The angles of scattering in the lab system are (i) 8,5=10" , (ii) @,5 = 90"
and (iii) 8,5 = 150" . In order to apply Eqs. 8.21 and 8.22 we must determine the scattering
angle e,, and total mechanical energy E,, in the c.m. frame of reference. We have also to
find out ro.
The total mechanical energy EL in the lab system is simply the initial K.E.of the
a-particles, since the target is initially at .rest and the two particles are free. This is given to
be 1.2 x 10-12J. We have to determine E,, in terms of E L . AS you know the total
mechanical energy in the c.m. frame before scattering is

Now from Eqs. 8.10a, 8.7e and 8.3b, u; = SV,u; = -I.' and
m1
Li
v =
m1
* so that !\

"'
ml +m2 ii
pi1
1
-.m"z
+ 1 nzfd ,,
2 ' m:
E 2m2
---ni (m,+.rn2)2
u;
(ml + md2 I<I
I t

or E,= -. , , )
1 m iU: ~ m212 + (ml + m212
(m+

For a-particle scattering by gold atoms, we have rnl 4 amu and w - . ' ' : cj. A 1! IRI.,~: -- 1 67 x 10 "kp

1 . 2 10-I2J
~
.'. E,, = = 1.2 x lo-" 1

From Eq. 8.22, r, = 44/ -- -2-e2

2--
47% Err" 47&1 E L ,rL 53
fi
Ai
Systems of Particles

Let us now use Eqs, 8.9, 8.21 and 8.22 to calculate,,8 b and (2 )for (i 0, = lo0,

(ii) eL = 90"' (iii) eL= 150°, respectively.

.
m1 = .02 << 1, we can neglect it, so that 0,,
Since - " 8,. In fact, you can verify this
m2
yourself by calculating the exact value of Oi,, using Eq. 8.9.

rb (3.0 x 10-l4 m) x 11.4

For 8,, = loo, b = - cot 5" - = 1.7 x 10-l3m.
2 2

(iii) For e,, = 150a, b=4 x 10-l5 m, (z)cn, = 6.5 x m2 sr -l

Let us again understand the physical significance of the Rutherford scattering cross-section in
the light of what we have studied so far. The distance of closest approach between the alpha

particle and the nucleus is given by rmi,=

ro + 4 rl t 4h 2 ,where
2

So to investigate the structure of the atom at small distances, E,, should be large because
only for those values of EL,,, rmi,would be su ciently small. Thus we should bombard the
target with high energy particles and examine large angle scattering for which b is small.
You can see from Example 2 that the cross-section is large for small values of scattering
angles. But physically we are interested in large angle scattering. This is because of the fact
that only very strong forces acting at very short distances can give rise to scattering at such
large angles. On what basis can we say this? Let us find out.
If the positive nuclear charge were spread out over a larger volume as proposed by Thomson,
the force would be inverse-squarelaw force only down to a disjance equal to the radius of the
charge distribution. Beyond this point it would decrease as we go to even smaller distances.
(Recall the Example 2 in Sec. 5.4 of Unit 5, Block 1. A force law; with a similar
dependence would hold for a charge placed inside a spherical charge distribution. The
constants would, of course, change). As a result, charged particles which penetrate inside the
charge distribution would experience a weaker force than the inverse square force. Thus,
particles with smaller h and smaller r ~would
, be scattered through smaller angles. But this
does not turn out to be true, experimentally.
This was why Rutherford asSumed the nuclear charge to be concentrated in a very small
volume. Only in such a case the strong inverse square force would act at very small distances
of the order of r,,,!, , giving rise to large deflections, The agreement of theory and experiment
vindicated Rutherford's nuclear model. Thus, Rutherford is credited with the 'discovery' of
atomic nucleus. In fact, if we neglect electrons completely in Thomson's model, the electric
field inten~ityat the atom's surface is calculated to be about 10I3Vm-I. On the other hand
using Rutherford's model, the electric field intensity at the surface of the nucleus exceeds
I . is greater try a factor of lo8, enough to reverse the direction of alpha
1 0 ~ l ~ m -This
particles.
An interesting rrspect of this scattering experiment is that it determines an upper limit to the'
dimensions of atomic nuclei. This is none else than the parameter r,, since for b = 0,

ffi
 Scaltering
r,,,,= r,.For the typical a-particle scattering discussed in Example 2, r, = 3.0 x 10-'4m.
The radius of gold nucleus is, therefore, less than 3.0 x 10-14m.In recent years, however,
a-particles of higher energies have been used to determine nuclear dimensions. It has been
found that the Rutherford scattering formula does fail to agree with experiment. From these
experiments the radius of gold nucleus comes out to be 116 of the values of ro found in
I
Example 2.
1 1

Another interesting feature of the dcs of Eq. 8.22 is that the corresponding total cross-section
is infinite. This is because of the infinite range of the Coulomb force. Even if a particle is
very far away from the nucleus, it experiences some force and is scattered through a non-zero
(though small) angle. So the total number of particles scattered is indeed infinite.
From these applications you must have realised that scattering is an important tool for
invesrigating the microscopic structure of matter. Let us now summarise what we have
studied in this unit.

8.4 ' SCTMMARY

m When a beam of particles strikes a target, the angular distribution of scattered particles
for different values of (8,o) may be found from the differential scattering cross-section
do
- . The tot21 scattering cross-section is obtained by integrating the dcs over all values
(iQ
of 8 and @.
e The dcs are measured in the laboratory frame of reference but calculated in the c.m. frame
of reference. For elastic scattering the relations between the scattering angle and the dcs
in the lab and c.m. frames are
sin Ocm
tan OL =
rnl
C O S ~ , ,+ -
m2

e If we know the ikpact parameter b as a function of 8, we can calculate the dcs for any
given scattering process using the relation

r For the elastic scattering of two hard spheres I,? I

r For the scattehng of a point charge q from another point charge q',
r
b = 2 cot
2
8cm do
, (z)cm = 126 cosec4-
ecm
-,
2
where ,b= 44' .
~KEOEC,

This is known as the Rutherford scattering cross-section. The tcs is infinite due to the
infinite range of Goglomb forces.

8.5 TERMINAL QUESTIONS .

1. Show that for Rutherford scattering the total cross-section for particles scattered through
any angle 8' greater than a lower limit 8, is

2. At lowenergies neutrons and protons behave roughly like hard spheres of radius about
1.3 x 10-l2 cm. A parallel beam of neutrons with a flux of 3 x lo6 neutrons s-I 55
I\ I C I I I S of Particles strikes a target containing 4 x 1022protons.A circular detector of radius 2 crn is placed
7 0 cm away from the target. Calculate the rate of detection, i.e. An /At of neutrons for a
scattering angle 8, = 30".
3. Find the dcs of 7 MeV a-particles scattered from a lead target (Z = 82, atomic weight
= 207 amu) for OL = 30°, given that 1 amu = 1.67 x kg.

8.6 ANSWERS
SAQs
. 1. (i) Here we will use Eq. 8.1b. We have to calculate An /At given F = 5 x 10'0m-2s-'~

do
- = 1.5 x m2 srl and d Q = 1C3sr.
dL2
From Eq. 8. l b

(ii) For N = we have

2. For elastic collisions, the total kinetic energy of the system remains constant. Its value
for the entire system is the same before and after collision. Thus, we have that

Substituting for u2' and v2' in terms of u,' and v,' from Eq. 8.4b we have

or U, = v l .
Similarly you can show that u2' = v2'.
3. Here y = 1/7,8,, = 70°, E,, for pion = 490 keV. From Eq. 8.9
sin 70"
tan 0, = = 1.94 or = 62.7".
cos 70" + 117
1 rn, u t and
The pion K.E.s in laboratory and c.m. frames of reference are EL = 5
1
E ~ =, - m, u;', respectively.
2
".
From Eqs. 8.10a and 8.3b we hi ve
 0cm 0cm
2sin -cos -
For y = 1, tan 0, =
sin 0cm -
-
2 2 eCnz
= tan -
cos e,, + 1 ocm 2
2c0s2,

So for 0, = 30" , 0, = 60" and for 0, = 60°, 0,, = 120"

We can now use Eq. 8.13 to obtain dcs in c.m. frame

(i) (2)lah = 2.3 x 1B27m2 s r l for 0, = 330"

b. In this case m l (( m,, since m l= mass of the electron = 9.31 x kg and

m, = mass of the Li atom =1.5 x kg.

Thus from Eq. 8.9 tan 0, = tan €Ic,, or OL = €Icm.

Again from Eq. 8.12, we have

since y a 1 and y cos O,, i<1 for all 0,.

Therefore, the dcs vs. 0 curve in the lab system will be the same as in Fig. 8.7.

5. Since m <im2, we have.8, = 0,, .

Again since the incident particle is a point mass, we put R = 0 in Eqs. 8.19, 8.20 and
8.18a and get

For €I,,,, = 60"

0cm
h = R , cos --= ( 3 x 10-I5m) x0.87 = 2.6 x 10-15m.
2

/ Terminal Questions
' I . The dcs for Rutherford scattering i s given by
2
ecm 44'
= - cosec4-* where I,= -
2 47% Ecn1
.

1 ~ determine a, since the dcs does not depend on 4 . Now instead of

We can use Eq. 8 . 2 to
zero, the lower limit for integration over 0 is any angle B'greater than 0, in this
question. Thus we have
Systems of Particles ..

= 2n J 6coxc4[ +]sin 8, doc,

1
['; cos 28 = 1-2 sin28].

4 sin -d Q-Cm
'
(1 - cos BL?m )*

Putting cos 8,, = t we get

cos0'
rtr?
o=-2
(- dl N?
(1-t)2 - -2
[+L-] 1 t
cos 0'

-1

-1

2. From Eq. 8. lc, the rate of detection of the scattered neutrons is

where dA is the cross-sectional area of the detector placed at a distance L from the target.
We have been given the following data :
Incidenl flux F = 3 x 1 O6 ~ m S-'- =~ 3 x 1 010m-2s-1
Number of target scattering centrzs N = 4 x 10".
Cross-sectional area of the detector, d A = nr 2 = n (0.02m)2

Distance between the detector and the target, L = 70 cm = 0.7m Let us calculate the dcs
using Eq. 8.19 for the elastic scattering of two hard spheres. In the c.m. frame it is

We have to find out (gL for which we will use Eq. 8.13, wherein we alsb need 8,,.

0,
From Eq. 8.9, for m,= m2 we have 8 - -
L- 2

For 8, = 30°,O,, = 60°, so that

(da lab
= 4 cos 30" ($Im
 'r'bercl'o~'e,the rate of detection o f neutrons is

3. Here we have to essentially ibllow the method used in Example 2. It is given that
El. = 7 MeV = 7 x 1.6 x 10-I3J
= 1 . 1 x 10-l?J
Putting m , = 4a.m.u. and 117, = 207 3.rn.u. in Eq. 8.23, we get

72 C 2 - 2 x 8 7 x- (1.6 x 1 0 - l -
Tj?
From Eq. 8.22.1.~= -
4 n ~4
o I,, (4n)x (8.8 x 10. l 2 C'N Irn ? j x ( 1.1 x 10-"J)
= 3.4 x 10-14m
17 7
Since -I = 0.019 (( 1, 8, = 8 l.lll .
n12
-
For 0, = 30°, 8,.,,, 30" and