Stellar adiabatic exponent (${\Gamma }_i$)

The stellar adiabatic exponents describe how pressure $P$, temperature $T$ and mass density $\rho$ respond along an isentropic process at fixed chemical composition. With specific entropy $s$,The chain rule gives ${\Gamma }_3-1={\Gamma }_1({\Gamma }_2-1)/{\Gamma }_2$. Thus the three names do not denote three independent thermodynamic responses. The adiabatic temperature gradient is ${\nabla }_{\mathrm{ad}}=({\Gamma }_2-1)/{\Gamma }_2$, while ${\Gamma }_1$ determines the squared adiabatic sound speed $c_s^2={\Gamma }_{1}P/\rho$.^[ref]

For a fixed-composition monatomic ideal gas, all three exponents equal $5/3$ and ${\nabla }_{\mathrm{ad}}=2/5$. For equilibrium blackbody radiation, all three equal $4/3$ and ${\nabla }_{\mathrm{ad}}=1/4$. In a gas-radiation mixture they generally differ; the adiabatic exponents of a monatomic gas-radiation mixture keep that distinction explicit. Partial ionization can soften the compressional response because some work changes ionization rather than immediately raising the temperature. The relevant exponent in stellar convective stability therefore need not equal a constant ideal-gas specific-heat ratio.

For fixed-composition monatomic ideal gas plus equilibrium radiation pressure, specific internal energy is $u=3\mathcal{R}T/2+a_{\mathrm{r}}{T}^4/\rho$. An isentropic process satisfies $du=Pd\rho /{\rho }^2$, giving ${\Gamma }_3-1=(8-6\beta )/(24-21\beta )$ andThe stellar gas-pressure fraction must be allowed to change along the adiabat. The pure-radiation and pure-gas limits give ${\Gamma }_1={\Gamma }_2=4/3$ and $5/3$, respectively. Partial ionization or different gas heat capacities change these formulas.

For fixed-composition monatomic ideal gas plus equilibrium blackbody radiation, let $\mathcal{R}=k/(\mu H)$ and $\beta =P_g/P$. The mass-specific heats are $c_P=\mathcal{R}(32-24\beta -3{\beta }^2)/(2{\beta }^2)$ and $c_V=\mathcal{R}(24-21\beta )/(2\beta )$. The specific-heat ratio is ${\Gamma }_1/\beta$, not generally any one of the stellar adiabatic exponents. Differentiate at constant total pressure rather than at constant $\beta$.