# Pauli Blocking in Degenerate Plasmas and the Separable Potential Approach

## TL;DR

This paper investigates how Pauli blocking affects bound states and ionization in degenerate plasmas using a quantum statistical approach, comparing exact solutions with perturbation theory for a separable potential.

## Contribution

It introduces a detailed analysis of Pauli blocking effects on bound states in dense plasmas, employing a separable potential and comparing various solution methods.

## Key findings

- Exact solutions for a separable potential are obtained.
- Continuum correlations significantly influence ionization.
- Pauli blocking reduces bound state stability in dense conditions.

## Abstract

The Mott effect describes the dissolution of bound states in a dense partially ionized plasma. It happens when the ionization potential depression, owing to effects of correlation and degeneracy, compensates the binding energy of the bound state. At high densities and moderate temperatures, the Pauli blocking becomes important and influences significantly the degree of ionization in the region of degenerate plasmas. A quantum statistical approach is used where the total density is decomposed in an uncorrelated, "free" part and correlations, as a consequence of the cluster decomposition of the self-energy. The contribution of correlations to the total density is given by bound states and continuum correlations. Exact solutions for a separable potential are compared to perturbation theory and numerical solutions of the in-medium Schr\"odinger equation. The in-medium scattering phase shifts are evaluated, and the role of continuum correlations is discussed. The Pauli blocking of bound states and the density of states are considered for warm dense matter conditions.