Equation of state of metallic fluids near the critical point of phase transition

Abstract

An equation of state of expanded fluid metals near the critical point of the liquid-gas phase transition has been obtained taking into account their plasmalike nature. Both liquid and gas phases are considered to be metallic, but in contrast with normal metals they have a virtual atomic structure. A percolation model of overlapping classically accessible spheres of valence electrons has been developed. The mixed electron density of neighboring atoms on the periphery of ellipsoidal atomic cells is found sufficiently uniform providing a simple model of interaction between atoms. The first terms in asymptotical expansion of the interatomic interaction energy at large coordination numbers have been found. When the interatomic interaction has a single characteristic length, the critical parameters of metals obey scaling laws that depend on the microscopic atomic characteristics, the valence, and the ionization potential. © 1996 The American Physical Society.