Effect of the reverse shock wave on the evolution of young supernova remnants

McKee's model of reverse shock wave in young supernova remnants is further discussed and a more general formula for the fraction of swept up mass is derived. It is found that (i) in the supernova material swept by the reverse shock wave, the temperature increases, and the total X-radiation decreases monotonically with time and (ii) the presence of the reverse shock decreases the fractional decay rate of the radio flux of supernova remnants, and satisfactorily accounts for the difference between the observed and Shklovsky's predicted values for Cas A.