Scaled molecular dynamics simulations for ultraintense laser - Cluster interactions

New developments in the field of charge separation in large finite systems pertain to extreme ionization of elemental and molecular clusters in ultraintense laser fields (peak intensities 10¹⁵-10²¹ Wcm^-2) with the production of highly charged ions (e.g., completely ionized deuterium, water and methane clusters or Xe³⁶⁺). Concurrently and parallel to extreme ionization, Coulomb explosion occurs with the production of high-energy (keV-MeV) ions. The large cluster and nanodroplet sizes, for which Coulomb explosion drives efficient table-top dd fusion and nucleosynthesis with heavier nuclei, preclude the use of the traditional particle molecular dynamics simulation methods. We consider a scaling method for molecular dynamics and explore its validity conditions. The scaling method will be applicable for large finite systems (with a number of constituents up to 10 and sizes up to 100 nm) where particle motion is governed by long-range (e.g., Coulomb) interactions.