Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2003/ib/paper-3/10a/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2003 ib Paper 3 10A Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-10-14
The specified Compton scattering formula requires the electron to be initially at rest in the frame where the wavelengths and angle are measured. This initial-rest assumption is implicit in the printed request; it is not valid for arbitrary initial electron momentum. Use four-momentum with Minkowski metric signature : initially , while and are null. Conservation gives , and the outgoing electron satisfies the same mass-shell condition . HenceAfter dividing by and substituting the photon energy relation,The scale is the electron Compton wavelength. For a moving initial electron, the earlier invariant identity remains valid, but includes its initial velocity and the wavelength shift is different.
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