Quantum computation of stopping power for inertial fusion target design I: Physics overview and the limits of classical algorithms

Stopping power is the rate at which a material absorbs the kinetic energy of a charged particle passing through it -- one of many properties needed over a wide range of thermodynamic conditions in modeling inertial fusion implosions. First-principles stopping calculations are classically challenging because they involve the dynamics of large electronic systems far from equilibrium, with accuracies that are particularly difficult to constrain and assess in the warm-dense conditions preceding ignition. In these two talks, we will describe a protocol for using a fault-tolerant quantum computer to calculate stopping power from a first-quantized representation of the electrons and projectile. The first will introduce the physics of electronic stopping, the state-of-the-art and limits of classical algorithms for estimating it, and some of the challenges that need to be overcome in developing a quantum protocol.