TRANSPORT AND RELAXATION IN DEGENERATE QUARK PLASMAS

Transport coefficients and relaxation times are calculated for degener ate quark matter within perturbative QCD for temperatures T and invers e screening lengths q(D) much smaller than the quark chemical potentia ls. The important physical effect is ''dynamical screening'' of transv erse interactions. The physics changes significantly when T approximat ely q(D) and an relaxation times change from a power law dependence on T for T much less than q(D) to a power law times a logarithmic one fo r T much greater than q(D). ResultS differ very much from standard Fer mi liquid results in both limits. Detailed analytical calculations of the momentum relaxation time for interpenetrating quark plasmas, the d iffusion coefficient, electrical conductivity, viscosity, and the ther mal conductivity are performed to leading orders in the coupling const ant. Applications to diffusion processes in the burning of neutron sta rs into strange quark matter and to electrical conduction in quark mat ter are given.