Path Integral Monte Carlo Simulations of Dense Plasma

Burkhard Militzer, University of California, Berkeley

Usage Details

Burkhard Militzer, Kevin Driver, Francois Soubiran, Shuai Zhang, Henry Peterson, Felipe Gonzalez, Rustin Domingos

Our equation of state (EOS) calculations will make high-pressure laboratory experiments more accurate. When laser fusion experiments are designed, detailed simulations are performed in advance in order to optimize the pulse shape and sequence of laser pulses to reach the highest pressures and temperatures and to maximize fusion yield. By providing EOS tables that are significantly more accurate than existing ones, we will make the modeling effort more reliable and robust and therefore contribute to making fusion experiments more successful.

Furthermore, our EOS tables for second-row elements will find many applications in different fields of science where extreme P-T conditions are of interest such as astrophysics including stellar interiors, high pressure science, and shock physics. The broader impact of this work lies in the potential of the method to provide a truly predictive capability to our understanding of warm, dense matter (WDM) and high energy density science as a whole. We will provide EOS tables and interpolation codes for a variety of materials to be used in different analytical modeling efforts and in hydrodynamic simulations. Our results will therefore aid any experimental technique that rapidly moves matter from the solid to plasma phase.