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Paper: Non-Equilibrium Hydrogen Ionization in the Solar Atmosphere
Volume: 368, The Physics of Chromospheric Plasmas
Page: 103
Authors: Leenaarts, J.; Wedemeyer-Boehm, S.; Carlsson, M.; Hansteen, V.H.
Abstract: The assumption of statistical equilibrium for atomic level populations of hydrogen does not hold under the conditions of the chromosphere due to the low density and the short dynamic timescale. In order to calculate the hydrogen ionization balance and the electron density one has to solve the time-dependent rate equations. We present results from 2D and 3D radiation-magneto-hydrodynamics simulations of the solar atmosphere incorporating the time-dependent rate equations for hydrogen. Both the hydrogen ionization degree and the electron density in our models are much more constant than LTE and statistical equilibrium theory predict. These simulations provide multidimensional model atmospheres with realistic electron densities and hydrogen level populations that can be used in detailed radiative transfer modeling.
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