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Spectral lines tell us a great deal about stars.On our quest to extract this information, we need to understand the basic physics that shapes the line absorption process.This chapter is where it starts.We look into the natural atomic broadening associated with the intrinsic widths of the atomic levels, various types of pressure broadening, and the ever-present thermal broadening.All these processes are put together in the line absorption coefficient, described by the Hjerting function.We are then armed to calculate theoretical line profiles.
The model photosphere is the core of the theoretical side of our studies.It is a numerical theory from which we compute the theoretical spectrum to be compared to the observations.Our model photospheres are based on hydrostatic equilibrium.To compute such models, we need the temperature distribution, a value for the surface gravity, and the chemical abundances of the electron donors.This chapter reveals how this process is done.
The energy distribution, or how the starlight is distributed in wavelength across wide wavelength spans, depends strongly on the temperature of the star.In the visible spectral region, we see the Paschen continuum and a short portion of the Balmer continuum.How the flux in these regions is measured and calibrated is a central theme of this chapter.We look at both observed and calculated energy distributions with the aim of deriving stellar temperatures and surface gravities, and eventually radii.
The main mode of energy transport through the photosphere is via radiation, i.e., photons.We consider how these photons are created and destroyed and how the energy flows outward.We build on the material from the previous two chapters and formulate the mathematical integral needed to calculate the spectrum of a star.Convection is considered briefly, mainly because it introduces velocity fields into the photosphere.
Fourier transforms and convolutions occur in dealing with spectrographs, stellar spectra, and many of the physical processes found in stellar photospheres.This chapter puts in place the Fourier tools we need.
On our way to calculating model stellar photospheres (next chapter), we need to study the continuous absorption.The main contributors are neutral hydrogen for hotter stars and the negative hydrogen ion for cooler, solar-type, stars.The physics and equations are developed for calculating the continuous absorption coefficient as it is needed in the solution of the transfer equation.