Electron-Ion Relaxation Times

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Abstract
The approach to equilibrium of the electron and ion components of a plasma has been studied. The interactions between particle pairs are determined in a polarizable plasma, so that collective effects are included at the outset. The pairwise interactions are treated quantum mechanically, in the Born approximation, whereas the collective effects are, in a consistent manner, treated classically. Corrections to previously quoted results, due to the proper inclusion of shielding, as well as quantum effects, are logarithmic.