UNIVERSAL ELASTIC-SCATTERING CROSS-SECTIONS FOR ELECTRONS IN THE RANGE 1-100 KEV

For high atomic numbers the total cross section for electron-atom elastic scattering calculated using the partial-wave method is found to fall into two regimes over the range 1-100 keV. The cross section in the higher energy regime scales as E-1, and in the lower energy regime as E-0.5. An empirical equation has been drawn up that describes these trends, and can give a universal expression for the cross sections over the Periodic Table to allow economical Monte Carlo simulation of electron scattering over a wide range of energies and materials.