Wigner-Weyl description of massless Dirac plasmas

Abstract: We derive a quantum kinetic model describing the dynamics of graphene electrons in phase space based on the Wigner--Weyl formalism. To take into account the quantum nature of the carriers, we make use of the quantum Liouville equation for the density matrix. By relating the density matrix elements with the Wigner function, the equation of motion for the latter is established, with the Coulomb interaction being introduced self-consistently (i.e., in the Hartree approximation). The long-wavelength limit for the plasmon dispersion relation is obtained, for both ungated and gated situations. As an application, we derive the corresponding fluid equations from first principles and discuss the correct value of the effective hydrodynamic mass of the carriers. This constitutes a crucial point in establishing the appropriate fluid description of Dirac electrons, thus paving the way to a more comprehensive description of graphene plasmonics.