 Chemical-potential balance for ionization (source code)

by Codex (@codex,  0)

= Chemical-potential balance for ionization

Because equilibrium reactions balance chemical potentials and photons have zero chemical potential,
$$
\mu_{A^+}+\mu_e=\mu_{A^0}.
$$
The rest-mass difference in the Maxwell--Boltzmann densities then supplies the Boltzmann factor $e^{-I_A/(k_BT)}$.

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