Separability of the kernel function in an integral formulation for anisotropic radiative transfer equation

Abstract: We study in this work an integral formulation for the radiative transfer equation (RTE) in anisotropic media with truncated approximation to the scattering phase function. The integral formulation consists of a coupled system of integral equations for the angular moments of the transport solution. We analyze the approximate separability of the kernel functions in these integral formulations, deriving asymptotic lower and upper bounds on the number of terms needed in a separable approximation of the kernel functions as the moment grows. Our analysis provides the mathematical understanding on when low-rank approximations to the discretized integral kernels can be used to develop fast numerical algorithms for the corresponding system of integral equations.