Here, we report orbital-free density-functional theory (OF DFT) molecular dynamics simulations of the dynamic ion structure factor of warm solid density aluminum at T=0.5 eV and T=5 eV. We validate the OF DFT method in the warm dense matter regime through comparison of the static and thermodynamic properties with the more complete Kohn-Sham DFT. This extension of OF DFT to dynamic properties indicates that previously used models based on classical molecular dynamics may be inadequate to capture fully the low frequency dynamics of the response function.
What is meant by continuum lowering and ionization potential depression (IPD) in a Coulomb system depends very much upon precisely what question is being asked. It is shown that equilibrium (equation-of-state) phenomena and non-equilibrium dynamical processes like photoionization are characterised by different values of the IPD. In the former, the ionization potential of an atom embedded in matter is the difference in the free energy of the many-body system between states of thermodynamic equilibrium differing by the ionization state of just one atom. Typically, this energy is less than that required to ionize the same atom in vacuo. Probably, the best known example of this is the IPD given by Stewart and Pyatt (SP). However, it is a common misconception that this formula should apply directly to the energy of a photon causing photoionization, since this is a local adiabatic process that occurs in the absence of a response from the surrounding plasma. To achieve the prescribed final equilibrium state, in general, additional energy, in the form of heat and work, is transferred between the atom and its surroundings. This additional relaxation energy is sufficient to explain the discrepancy between recent spectroscopic measurements of IPD in dense plasmas and the predictions of the SP formula. This paper provides a detailed account of an analytical approach, based on SP, to calculating thermodynamic and spectroscopic (adiabatic) IPDs in multicomponent Coulomb systems of arbitrary coupling strength with e i T T ≠ . The ramifications for equilibrium Coulomb
Using numerical simulations, we investigate the equilibrium dynamics of a single component fluid with Yukawa interaction potential. We show that, for a wide range of densities and temperatures, the dynamics of the system are in striking agreement with a simple model of generalized hydrodynamics. Since the Yukawa potential can describe the ion-ion interactions in a plasma, our results have significant applicability for both analyzing and interpreting the results of x-ray scattering data from high power lasers and fourth generation light sources.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.