What is mean free path of a gas molecule.? On what factor does the mean free path depend.?
Answers
The mean free path, in physics, refers to the average distance travelled by a moving particle like an atom, a molecule or a photon between successive collisions that modify its direction or energy or other particle properties.
The mean free path depends on the following factors:
i. Density - Density increases when the number of molecules are increased or the volume is decreased.
When the density of a gas increases the molecules become closer to each other. So there are more chances of running into each other. Therefore the mean free path decreases.
ii. Radius of molecule - When the radii of the molecules are increased the space between them decreases. Therefore, they run into each other more often. So the mean free path decreases.
iii. Other factors - Mean free path can be affected indirectly by pressure, temperature and other factors which affect density.
Answer:
It is the average distance traveled by a moving particle between two successive impacts in a system of agitated particles, which results in the change in their energy, physical properties, or direction of motion
Factors affecting mean free path
Some mean free path factors are mentioned in the points below.
Density: As the density increases, the molecules come closer to each other, thus increasing the number of collisions, and decreasing the mean free path.
Number of molecules: As the number of molecules increases the probability of collision increases and thus the mean free path decreases.
Radius of the molecule: As the radius of the molecule increases the space between the molecules decreases causing the number of collisions to increase, thus decreasing the mean free path.
Pressure, temperature, and other physical factors also affect the density of the gas and thus affect the mean free path...