Noncentral Elastic Collision: Return to Moving Particles

[Gavroy]

hi

i am describing a noncentral elastic collision between two particles. therefore i assumed that one of them is at rest. now i want to return back to the system where both particles are moving. do i only need to add the velocity of the particle at rest to both of them and leave all angles unchanged or is there something else i have to keep in mind? i am a little bit uncertain about this whole thing.

thank you for any kind of help!

 

[majon]

This link might help: www . phi . duke . edu/courses/217/MottScatteringReport/node8.html

 

[Gavroy]

sorry, link does not work.

 

[haruspex]

hi

i am describing a noncentral elastic collision between two particles. therefore i assumed that one of them is at rest. now i want to return back to the system where both particles are moving. do i only need to add the velocity of the particle at rest to both of them and leave all angles unchanged or is there something else i have to keep in mind? i am a little bit uncertain about this whole thing.

thank you for any kind of help!

Just take your reference frame as one in which one of the particles is initially at rest. I.e. subtract that velocity everywhere from the initial conditions and add it back in everywhere to the answer.