Impact Parameter

The impact parameter is defined as the perpendicular distance between the path of a projectile and the center of the field created by an object that the projectile is approaching (see diagram). It is often referred to in Nuclear Physics (see Rutherford Scattering), as well as in Classical Mechanics.

The impact parameter is related to the scattering angle by

where is the velocity of the projectile when it is far from the center, and is its closest distance from the center.

Famous quotes containing the word impact:

    One can describe a landscape in many different words and sentences, but one would not normally cut up a picture of a landscape and rearrange it in different patterns in order to describe it in different ways. Because a photograph is not composed of discrete units strung out in a linear row of meaningful pieces, we do not understand it by looking at one element after another in a set sequence. The photograph is understood in one act of seeing; it is perceived in a gestalt.
    Joshua Meyrowitz, U.S. educator, media critic. “The Blurring of Public and Private Behaviors,” No Sense of Place: The Impact of Electronic Media on Social Behavior, Oxford University Press (1985)