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Hydrogen Gas Ionization Analysis

Saha's equation describes the ionization state of a gas in thermal equilibrium and can be used to determine the ionization fraction of hydrogen as a function of temperature. For a pure hydrogen gas, Saha's equation reduces to a single equation that is quadratic in the ionization fraction. This quadratic equation can be solved to obtain the ionization fraction as a function of temperature, as shown in a plot for a hydrogen number density of 1020 m-3, where an ionization fraction of 1/2 occurs at around 10,000 K.

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Nicholas Wimer
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610 views2 pages

Hydrogen Gas Ionization Analysis

Saha's equation describes the ionization state of a gas in thermal equilibrium and can be used to determine the ionization fraction of hydrogen as a function of temperature. For a pure hydrogen gas, Saha's equation reduces to a single equation that is quadratic in the ionization fraction. This quadratic equation can be solved to obtain the ionization fraction as a function of temperature, as shown in a plot for a hydrogen number density of 1020 m-3, where an ionization fraction of 1/2 occurs at around 10,000 K.

Uploaded by

Nicholas Wimer
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Ionization of Hydrogen

Revision : 1.2

The ionization state of a gas in equilibrium at temperature T can be found


using Saha’s equation,
� �3/2
Nj+1 2Zj+1 2πme kT
= e−χj /kT . (1)
Nj ne Zj h2

There is a separate Saha equation for each pair (j, j + 1) of ionization states
associated with each element present in the gas. These equations have to be
solved simultaneously, together with an equation governing charge conservation
which ultimately sets the electron number density ne . Generally, this is a task
best left to a computer.
However, the simplest case of a pure hydrogen gas is amenable to analytic
solution, since there is only one Saha equation to solve. Assuming most of
the neutral hydrogen is in the ground state, we can make the approximation
Zi ≈ g1 = 2 (here, g1 is the statistical weight of the ground state). For the
ionized hydrogen, Zii = 1 because the ionized state is just a proton. Saha’s
equation then becomes
� �3/2
Nii 1 2πme kT
= e−13.6 eV/kT . (2)
Ni ne h2

To determine the electron number density ne , we can take advantage of charge


conservation. If there are n hydrogen atoms/ions per unit volume, then

Nii
ne = n, (3)
Ni + Nii
since there is one electron for each H ii ion. Then, Saha’s equation becomes
� �3/2
Nii2 Nii2 1 2πme kT
= = e−13.6 eV/kT , (4)
Ni (Ni + Nii ) (N − Nii )N n h2

where N ≡ Ni +Nii . Introducing the ionization fraction x = Nii /N , this becomes


� �3/2
x2 1 2πme kT
= e−13.6 eV/kT . (5)
1−x n h2

This last equation can be recognized as a quadratic equation for x, which can
be solved using standard methods. Based on the resulting solution, Fig. 1 plots
the ionization fraction as a function of temperature for a pure hydrogen gas
with a number density n = 1020 m−3 (a value typical to a stellar atmosphere).
Note how a fraction x = 1/2 is reached at a temperature around T ≈ 10, 000 K
— this is where the Balmer lines are strongest.

1
Figure 1: The ionization fraction x of a pure hydrogen gas, plotted as a function
of temperature.

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