Time-dependent density-functional theory of light absorption in dense plasmas: Application to iron plasma

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Abstract
The objective of this paper is to present a simple time-dependent calculation of the light-absorption cross section for a strongly coupled partially degenerate plasma so as to transcend the usual single-particle picture. This is achieved within the density-functional theory (DFT) of plasmas by generalizing the method given by Zangwill and Soven [Phys. Rev. A 21, 1561 (1980)] for atomic calculations at zero temperature. The essential feature of the time-dependent DFT is the correct treatment of the relaxation of the system under the external field. Exploratory calculations for an Fe plasma at 100 eV show new features in the absorption cross section which are absent in the usual single-particle theory. These arise from intershell correlations, and channel-mixing and self-energy effects. These many-body effects introduce significant modifications to the radiative properties of plasmas and are shown to be efficiently calculable by this time-dependent density-functional theory.