Nature of coherent enhancement of inelastic electron scattering from disordered media

The mechanism of weak localization of relatively fast electrons scattered with a fixed energy loss from disordered media is examined. The main focus of this paper is to put forward an explanation for why coherent enhancement of electron scattering in the inelastic-scattering channel takes place at angles which differ from π. A simplified kinematic model is proposed to determine the basic properties of the weak localization of electrons in the inelastic scattering channel. The model easily reproduces the range of scattering angles typical for the weak localization of electrons with fixed energy loss. The procedure does not require calculation of the contribution from the crossed diagrams. The results agree with those based on the dynamical theory associated with the calculation of the crossed and ladder diagrams. It is possible to follow the transition from the weak localization of the new type to the ordinary weak localization with decreasing energy loss. The weak localization of the new type is in accord with the weak localization of regular type if the energy loss is about the energy of an optical phonon.