Self-Similarity in Random Collision Processes

D. ben-Avraham, Eli Ben-Naim, Katja Lindenberg, Alexandre Rosas

Kinetics of collision processes with linear mixing rules are investigated analytically. The velocity distribution becomes self-similar in the long time limit and the similarity functions have algebraic or stretched exponential tails. The characteristic exponents are roots of transcendental equations and vary continuously with the mixing parameters. In the presence of conservation laws, the velocity distributions become universal.


source, ps, pdf