Recent developments in the theory of ionic melts

Summary A brief review is given of the present state of the art in the theory and numerical simulation of ionic melts, and in particular of molten alkali halides. Some recent developments concerning the theoretical evaluation of the static pair structure, the phase diagram and the microscopic dynamics in these melts are discussed. The importance of ionic polarizabilities is stressed. Some perspectives for future work are pointed out in the conclusion. Unité de Recherche Associée 1325 du CNRS.