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Pumping cycles of cosmic masers: sense and methods of investigation
Author(s) -
Sobolev A. M.
Publication year - 1989
Publication title -
astronomische nachrichten
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.394
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1521-3994
pISSN - 0004-6337
DOI - 10.1002/asna.2113100428
Subject(s) - maser , physics , population , astrophysics , statistical physics , cosmic cancer database , sociology , demography
Abstract The principles of the search and analysis of the routes of population transfer between the energy levels of quantum systems are formulated. Using the Monte‐Carlo technique it is shown that the number of pumping cycles of cosmic masers may be rather large. For example, the pumping mechanism of the H 2 O J KK . = 6 16 – 5 23 line in a two‐temperature gas needs approximately 2 ± 10 13 cycles to account for 75% of population transfer between the maser levels. The degree of participation of various types of cycles in the total population exchange between maser levels is suggested as a means for determining the thermodynamical type of the pumping mechanism. The type of a cycle is determined by the nature of residual population transfer in its ascendant (source of energy) and descendant (sink) transitions. The nature of the transition is definite, if the residual transfer caused by the processes of a certain kind greatly exceeds the others. The knowledge of the degrees of participation of individual levels and transitions provides the possibility to decide whether the scheme of levels and transitions is adequate for kinetical investigations.