Current-density functional theory of time-dependent linear response in quantal fluids: recent progress

Vignale and Kohn have recently formulated a local density approximation to the time-dependent linear response of an inhomogeneous electron system in terms of a vector potential for exchange and correlation. The vector potential depends on the induced current density through spectral kernels to be evaluated on the homogeneous electron-gas. After a brief review of their theory, the case of inhomogeneous Bose superfluids is considered, with main focus on dynamic Kohn-Sham equations for the condensate in the linear response regime and on quantal generalized hydrodynamic equations in the weak inhomogeneity limit. We also present the results of calculations of the exchange-correlation spectra in both electron and superfluid boson systems.Comment: 12 pages, 2 figures, Postscript fil

Time-dependent density functional theory beyond the adiabatic local density approximation

In the current density functional theory of linear and nonlinear time-dependent phenomena, the treatment of exchange and correlation beyond the level of the adiabatic local density approximation is shown to lead to the appearance of viscoelastic stresses in the electron fluid. Complex and frequency-dependent viscosity/elasticity coefficients are microscopically derived and expressed in terms of properties of the homogeneous electron gas. As a first consequence of this formalism, we provide an explicit formula for the linewidths of collective excitations in electronic systems.Comment: RevTeX, 4 page

Non-destructive depth reconstruction of Al-Al2_2Cu layer structure with nanometer resolution using extreme ultraviolet coherence tomography

Non-destructive cross-sectional characterization of materials systems with a resolution in the nanometer range and the ability to allow for time-resolved in-situ studies is of great importance in material science. Here, we present such a measurements method, extreme ultraviolet coherence tomography (XCT). The method is non-destructive during sample preparation as well as during the measurement, which is distinguished by a negligible thermal load as compared to electron microscopy methods. Laser-generated radiation in the extreme ultraviolet (XUV) and soft x-ray range is used for characterization. The measurement principle is interferometric and the signal evaluation is performed via an iterative Fourier analysis. The method is demonstrated on the metallic material system Al-Al$_2$Cu and compared to electron and atomic force microscopy measurements. We also present advanced reconstruction methods for XCT which even allow for the determination of the roughness of outer and inner interfaces.Comment: First two authors contributed equally to this work and are ordered alphabetically. 14 page

Experimental study of static flow instability in subcooled flow boiling in parallel channels

Experimental data for static flow instability or flow excursion (FE) at conditions applicable to the Advanced Neutron Source Reactor are very limited. A series of FE tests with light water flowing vertically upward was completed covering a local exit heat flux range of 0.7--18 MW/m{sup 2}, exit velocity range of 2.8--28.4 m/s, exit pressure range of 0.117--1.7 MPa, and inlet temperature range of 40-- 50{degrees}C. Most of the tests were performed in a ``stiff`` (constant flow) system where the instability threshold was detected through the minimum of the pressure-drop curve. A few tests were also conducted using as ``soft`` (constant pressure drop) a system as possible to secure a true FE phenomenon (actual secondary burnout). True critical heat flux experiments under similar conditions were also conducted using a stiff system. The FE data reported in this study considerably extend the velocity range of data presently available worldwide, most of which were obtained at velocities below 10 m/s. The Saha and Zuber correlation had the best fit with the data out of the three correlations compared. However, a modification was necessary to take into account the demonstrated dependence of the St and Nu numbers on subcooling levels, especially in the low subcooling regime. Comparison of Thermal Hydraulic Test Loop (THTL) data, as well as extensive data from other investigators, led to a proposed modification to the Saha and Zuber correlation for onset of significant void, applied to FE prediction. The mean and standard deviation of the THTL data were 0.95 and 15%, respectively, when comparing the THTL data with the original Saha and Zuber correlation, and 0.93 and 10% when comparing them with the modification. Comparison with the worldwide database showed a mean and standard deviation of 1.37 and 53%, respectively, for the original Saha and Zuber correlation and 1.0 and 27% for the modification

Plasmon Lifetime in K: A Case Study of Correlated Electrons in Solids Amenable to Ab Initio Theory

On the basis of a new ab initio, all-electron response scheme, formulated within time-dependent density-functional theory, we solve the puzzle posed by the anomalous dispersion of the plasmon linewidth in K. The key damping mechanism is shown to be decay into particle-hole pairs involving empty states of d-symmetry. While the effect of many-particle correlations is small, the correlations built into the "final-state" -d-bands play an important, and novel, role ---which is related to the phase-space complexity associated with these flat bands. Our case study of plasmon lifetime in K illustrates the importance of ab initio paradigms for the study of excitations in correlated-electron systems.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures, for html browsing see http://web.utk.edu/~weik