COMPTRA04 is a Fortran 90 program package developed for the calculation of composition and transport coefficients within the partially ionized plasma model. This paper summarizes the theoretical background and gives instructions on how to implement and use the package. Results obtained by using COMPTRA04 are given for Be plasma in order to allow for a test of the package.

Thermoelectric transport coefficients of metal plasmas are calculated within the linear response theory applied previously to determine the electrical conductivity of Al and Cu plasmas [R. Redmer, Phys. Rev. E 59, 1073 (1999)]. We consider temperatures of 1-3 eV and densities of 0.001-1 g/cm(3) as relevant in rapid wire evaporation experiments. The plasma composition is calculated considering higher ionization stages of atoms up to 5+, and solving the respective system of coupled mass action laws. Interactions between charged particles are treated on T matrix level. Results for the electrical conductivity of various metal plasmas are in reasonable agreement with experimental data. Thermal conductivity and thermopower are also given. In addition, we compare with experimental data for temperatures up to 25 eV and liquidlike densities.

This paper presents an improved analytical expression for the x-ray dynamic structure factor from a dense plasma which includes the effects of weakly bound electrons. This result can be applied to describe scattering from low to moderate Z plasmas, and it covers the entire range of plasma conditions that can be found in inertial confinement fusion experiments, from ideal to degenerate up to moderately coupled systems. The theory is used to interpret x-ray scattering experiments from solid density carbon plasmas and to extract accurate measurements of electron temperature, electron density, and charge state. The experimental results are applied to validate various equation-of-state models for carbon plasmas.

We present experimental and theoretical results for the electrical conductivity of noble gases (He, Ne, Ar, Kr, Xe) up to high pressures where a transition from nonmetallic to metallic-like conductivities occurs. In addition, we show the behavior of the thermal conductivity and thermopower for xenon as an example. The experiments were performed using explosively driven shock waves. Different geometries allow to probe various parameter regions up to several megabars. Besides single-shock experiments along the principal Hugoniot curve, also multiple-shock experiments were performed which follow almost an isentrope. The theoretical calculations were performed within a partially ionized plasma model. The composition is determined by solving a system of mass action laws. The transport coefficients are calculated within linear response theory taking into account the relevant scattering mechanisms of electrons at different ion species, atoms, and other electrons. The general trends of the experimental results can be explained within this theoretical approach.

No abstract