Relativistic electron-atom scattering in an extremely powerful laser field: Relevance of spin effects

We reconsider the relativistic scattering of electrons by an atom, being approximated by a static potential, in an extremely powerful electromagnetic plane wave of frequency ω and linear polarization ε. Since to a first order of approximation spin effects can be neglected, we first describe the scattered electron by the Gordon solution of the Klein-Gordon equation. Then we investigate the same scattering process by including the spin effects, using for the electron the Volkov solution of the Dirac equation. For sufficiently energetic electrons, the first-order Born approximation can be employed to represent the corresponding scattering matrix element. We compare the results of the differential cross sections of induced and inverse bremsstrahlung, evaluated from both approximations, for various parameter values and angular configurations and we find that in most cases the spin effects are marginal, even at very high laser power. On the other hand, we recover the various asymmetries in the angular distributions of the scattered electrons and their respective energies due to the laser-induced drift motion of the electrons in the direction of propagation of the radiation field, thus confirming the findings of our previous work [Phys. Rev. A 59, 2105 (1999); Laser Physics 10, 163 (2000)]