Quantum Hydrodynamics and Rayleigh-Taylor Instability

#plasma #quantum #hydrodynamics #astrophysics #simulation

Matter at extreme pressures, temperatures, and densities characterizes a wide variety of natural and man-made phenomena, including interiors of Jovian size planets, hyper- velocity meteor impacts, the burning core of stars, thermonuclear burning inertial confinement fusion capsules. Matter at these conditions defines the exciting and challenging field of High Energy Density Physics (HEDP). Besides vast experimental resources, there exists a rich set of computational tools that model the micro to macro regimes of HEDP. Recently, there has been a resurgence in interest in using a “simpler” approach to investigating HEDP based on quantum hydrodynamics. Quantum Hydrodynamics (QHD) has a long and interesting history, dating back to the first developments by Madelung and Bohm. In this talk, we discuss the historical and recent developments in QHD, including pitfalls, as applied to quantum many-body systems relevant to HEDP regimes. We will present three different approaches to deriving the QHD equations-Madelung, Bloch, and Wigner and discuss their pros and cons. Finally, the role that Rayleigh-Taylor hydrodynamic instabilities play is discussed within the QHD formalism.