Optical spectrum and local lattice structure for ruby

We perform ab initio calculations using a pseudo-potential plane-wave method based on density functional theory, within the local density approximation and generalized gradient approximation, in order to determine and predict the pressure dependence of structural and elastic properties of spinel compounds: MgAl₂O₄, MgGa₂O₄ and MgIn₂O₄. The results are in agreement with the available experimental data and other theoretical calculations.     

Elastic and brittle properties of the B2-MgRE (RE = Sc,Y, Ce,Pr, Nd,Gd, Tb,Dy, Ho,Er) intermetallics

The brittle and elastic properties of the B2-MgRE (RE = Sc, Y, Ce, Pr, Nd, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er) intermetallics have been investigated using first-principles density functional calculations. The calculated equilibrium lattice constants and enthalpies of formation are in overall agreement with the available experiment and theoretical results. The related physical properties of those compounds are compared with that of ductile YCu. The Fermi energy occurs above a peak in the DOS for B2-MgRE intermetallics, whereas for ductile YCu the Fermi energy occurs near a minimum in the DOS. For B2-YCu, the partial density of states of d-states at the Fermi energy is low, while for B2-MgRE the RE d-states are partially occupied, indicating their important roles in the directional bonding for this material. The Cauchy pressure (C₁₂-C₄₄) and the ratio of bulk to shear modulus B/G are used to assess the brittle/ductile behavior of B2-MgRE and YCu compounds. It can be concluded that the B2-MgRE alloys have brittle behavior. MgSc is the most brittle, and MgHo is the least brittle amongst those alloys.     

Prediction study of structural and elastic properties under pressure effect of M2SnC (M=Ti, Zr, Nb, Hf)

Using first-principles calculations, we have studied the structural and elastic properties of M₂SnC, with M=Ti, Zr, Nb and Hf. Geometrical optimization of the unit cell is in good agreement with the available experimental data. The effect of high pressures, up to 20 GPa, on the lattice constants shows that the contractions along the a-axis were higher than those along the c-axis. We have observed a quadratic dependence of the lattice parameters versus the applied pressure. The elastic constants and their pressure dependence are calculated using the static finite strain technique. A linear dependence of the elastic stiffnesses on the pressure is found. We derived the bulk and shear moduli, Young's moduli and Poisson's ratio for ideal polycrystalline M₂SnC aggregates. We estimated the Debye temperature of M₂SnC from the average sound velocity. This is the first quantitative theoretical prediction of the elastic properties of Ti₂SnC, Zr₂SnC, Nb₂SnC, and Hf₂SnC compounds.     

Ab-initio simulation of elastic constants for some ceramic materials

Athermal elasticity for some ceramic materials (α-Al₂O₃, SiC (α and β phases), TiO₂ (rutile and anatase), hexagonal AlN and TiB₂, cubic BN and CaF₂, and monoclinic ZrO₂) have been investigated via density functional theory. Energy-volume equation-of-state computations to obtain the zero pressure equilibrium volume and bulk modulus as well as computations of the full elastic constant tensor of these ceramics at the experimental zero pressure volume have been performed. The present results for the single crystal elasticity are in good agreement with experiments both for the aggregate properties (bulk and shear modulus) and the elastic anisotropy. In contrast, a considerable discrepancy for the zero pressure bulk modulus of some ceramics evaluated from the energy-volume fit to the computational zero pressure volume has been observed.     

Ab initio study on elastic and thermodynamical properties of Ti<Subscript>1-x</Subscript>Zr<Subscript>x</Subscript>C

Elastic and Thermodynamical properties of Ti_1-xZr_xC have been investigated using LAPW + lo within the density-functional theory with the generalized gradient approximation. We have studied the stability of the alloy Ti_1-xZr_xC as a function of Zr composition in rocksalt (B1) structure by calculating the elastic constants C₁₁, C₁₂ and C₄₄ using the tetragonal and trigonal distortions. Mechanical properties such as Poisson ratio, bulk, shear and Young’s modulii of Ti_1-xZr_xC are calculated. The Debye temperature and hardness are also computed for the first time to our knowledge for Ti_1-xZr_xC in various compositions.     

First principles study of structural,magnetic and electronic properties of half-metallic CrO<Subscript>2</Subscript> under pressure

A first-principles tight-binding linear muffin tin orbital (TB-LMTO) method within the local-density approximation is used to calculate the total energy, lattice parameter, bulk modulus, magnetic moment, density of states and energy band structures of half-metallic CrO₂ at ambient as well as at high pressure. The magnetic and structural stabilities are determined from the total energy calculations. From the present study we predict a magnetic transition from ferromagnetic (FM) state to a non-magnetic (NM) state at 65 GPa, which is of second order in nature. We also observe from our calculations that CrO₂ is more stable in tetragonal phase (rutile-type) at ambient conditions and undergoes a transition to an orthorhombic structure (CaCl₂-type) at 9.6 GPa, which is in good agreement with the experimental results. We predict a second structural phase transition from CaCl₂- to fluorite-type structure at 89.6 GPa with a volume collapse of 7.3%, which is yet to be confirmed experimentally. Interestingly, CrO₂ shows half metallicity under ambient conditions. After the first structural phase transition from tetragonal to orthorhombic, half metallicity has been retained in CrO₂ and it vanishes at a pressure of 41.6 GPa. Ferromagnetism is quenched at a pressure of 65 GPa.     

DFT study of BaTiO<Subscript>3</Subscript> (001) surface with O and O<Subscript>2</Subscript> adsorption

Progress of scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) allowed to handle various molecules adsorbed on a given surface. New concepts emerged with molecules on surfaces considered as nano machines by themselves. In this context, a thorough knowledge of surfaces and adsorbed molecules at an atomic scale is thus particularly invaluable. In this work, within the framework of density functional theory (DFT), we present an electronic and structural ab initio study of a BaTiO₃ (001) surface (perovskite structure) in its paraelectric phase. As far as we know the atomic and molecular adsorption of oxygen at surface is then analyzed for the first time in the literature. Relaxation is taken into account for several layers. Its analysis for a depth of at least four layers enables us to conclude that a reasonable approximation for a BaTiO₃ (001) surface is provided with a slab made up of nine plans. The relative stability of two possible terminations is considered. By using a kinetic energy cut off of 400 eV, we found that a surface with BaO termination is more stable than with TiO₂ termination. Consequently, a surface with BaO termination was chosen to adsorb either O atom or O₂ molecule and the corresponding calculations were performed with a coverage 1 on a (1×1) cell. A series of cases with O₂ molecule adsorbed in various geometrical configurations are also analyzed. For O₂, the most favorable adsorption is obtained when the molecule is placed horizontally, with its axis, directed along the Ba-Ba axis and with its centre of gravity located above a Ba atom. The corresponding value of the adsorption energy is -9.70 eV per molecule (-4.85 eV per O atom). The molecule is then rather extended since the O–O distance measures 1.829 ?. By comparison, the adsorption energy of an O atom directly located above a Ba atom is only -3.50 eV. Therefore we are allowed to conclude that the O–O interaction stabilizes atomic adsorption. Also the local densities of states (LDOS) corresponding to various situations are discussed in the present paper. Up to now, we are not aware of experimental data to be compared to our calculated results.     

Structural, electronic and elastic properties of M2SC (M = Ti, Zr, Hf) compounds

Using ab initio calculations, we have studied the structural, electronic and elastic properties of M₂SC, with M = Ti, Zr and Hf. Geometrical optimization of the unit cell are in good agreement with the available experimental data. The band structures show that all three materials are conducting. The analysis of the site and momentum projected densities shows that the bonding is achieved through a hybridization of M-atom d states with S and C-atom p states. The Md-Sp bonds are lower in energy and are stiffer than Md-Cp bonds. The elastic constants are calculated using the static finite strain technique. We derived the bulk and shear moduli, Young's moduli and Poisson's ratio for ideal polycrystalline M₂SC aggregates. We estimated the Debye temperature of M₂SC from the average sound velocity. This is a quantitative theoretical prediction of the elastic properties of Ti₂SC, Zr₂SC, and Hf₂SC compounds, and it still awaits experimental confirmation.     

Band structure of tetragonal BaTiO <Emphasis Type="Bold">3</Emphasis>

The electronic structure, total density of states DOS and electronic density in ferroelectric tetragonal crystal BaTiO₃ are studied using WIEN2k package. This employs the full potential-linearized augmented plan wave FP-LAPW method in the framework of the density functional theory DFT with the generalized gradient approximation (GGA). The results show an indirect band gap of 2.30 eV at the Γ point in the Brillouin zone. The calculated band structure and density of states of BaTiO₃ agree with the previous experimental and theoretical results, as do the charge distribution and the prediction of the nature of the chemical bonding. Received 11 December 2002 / Received in final form 3 February 2003 Published online 1st April 2003 RID="a" ID="a"e-mail: salehihamid@yahoo.com     

Structural properties of zinc-blende Ga<Subscript>x</Subscript>In<Subscript>1-x</Subscript>N: ab initio calculations

We present a theoretical study of the structural properties, namely lattice constant, bulk modulus and its pressure derivative of zinc-blende Ga_xIn_1-xN. The calculations are performed using first-principles calculations in the framework of the density-functional-theory within the local density approximation under the virtual crystal approximation. The computed values are in good agreement with the available experimental data. The composition dependence of the studied quantities is examined. Besides, the deviation of the alloy lattice constant from Vegard's law is evaluated.     

Prediction study of elastic properties under pressure effect for filled tetrahedral semiconductors LiZnN, LiZnP and LiZnAs

First principle calculations of elastic properties under pressure of the filled tetrahedral semiconductors LiZnN, LiZnP and LiZnAs are presented, using the pseudo-potential plane-waves approach based on density functional theory, within the local density approximation. Elastic constants, bulk modulus, Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio are calculated at zero pressure. A linear dependence of the bulk modulus and elastic constants with applied pressure is found. As the experimental elastic constants are not available for LiZnX, we have also calculated the elastic constants of GaN, GaP and GaAs, the binary analogues of LiZnN, LiZnP and LiZnAs, respectively, for checking the reliability and accuracy of our predicted results for LiZnX. The obtained results agree well with the available experimental data.     

Interfacial properties of Ce<Subscript>0.75</Subscript>Zr<Subscript>0.25</Subscript>O<Subscript>2</Subscript> supported noble metals (Pd,Pt) from first principles

First-principles electronic structure calculations of noble metals (NM=Pd, Pt)/Ce_0.75Zr_0.25O₂ systems are presented. It is found that: the NM adatoms do not prefer to stay at the atop or the bridge sites of the cations (Ce and Zr), but prefer to be adsorbed at or around the anion sites. The most preferable adsorption sites for both the Pd and Pt adatoms are the O-bridge sites neighboring the Zr dopant. The Pt adatom show much stronger interaction with the Ce_0.75Zr_0.25O₂(111) surface than does the Pd adatom. The interactions of the NM/Ce_0.75Zr_0.25O₂(111) interfaces are stronger than those of the corresponding NM/ceria(111) interfaces. There are some metal induced gap states (MIGS) appeared in the gaps of the NM/Ce_0.75Zr_0.25O₂(111) interfaces, which are important to catalytic properties of the NM/Ce_0.75Zr_0.25O₂(111) catalysts.     

First-principles investigation of structural,electronic and optical properties of IVA group spinel nitrides

The Si₃N₄ and Ge₃N₄ are important structural ceramics with many applications because of their attractive high temperature and oxidation resistant properties. The high-pressure and high-temperature spinel phases of these two materials were noticed to have wide, direct electronic band gaps. Other single and double spinel nitrides formed from IVA and IVB group elements have also attracted much attention. Present research focuses on selecting a special substance with promising optical properties and stability besides the attractive electronic properties. The formation energies of spinel nitrides are calculated and stabilities of a group of spinel nitrides are discussed, the structural and electronic properties of them are investigated in detail. By random phase approximation (RPA), the optical properties of spinel nitrides are researched. We obtain that γ-SiGe₂N₄ has some promising properties with potential technological applications from various aspects. The band transitions which contribute most to the peak of ε₂ have been identified. An assumption is proposed to raise the peak of ε₂.     

First-principles investigation of electronic and optical properties in wurtzite Zn<Subscript>1-x</Subscript>Mg<Subscript>x</Subscript>O

A first-principles study has been performed to evaluate the electronic and optical properties of wurtzite Zn_1-xMg_xO. Substitutional doping is considered with Mg concentrations of x = 0, 0.0625, 0.125, 0.1875 and 0.25, respectively. Mg incorporation can induce band gap widening due to the decrease of Zn 4s states. The imaginary part of the dielectric function shows that the optical transition from band edge emission decreases slightly with increasing Mg contents. The optical band gap also increases from 3.2 to 3.7 eV with increasing Mg contents from 0.0625 to 0.25. The calculated results suggest that relatively high Mg concentration is necessary for effective band gap engineering of wurtzite Zn_1-xMg_xO.     

A new real-space algorithm for realistic density functional calculations

We present the implementation of a fast real-space algorithm for density functional calculations for atomic nanoclusters. The numerical method is based on a fourth-order operator splitting technique for the solution of the Kohn-Sham equation [1]. The convergence of the procedure is about one order of magnitude better than that of previously used second-order operator factorizations. The method has now been extended to deal with non-local pseudopotentials of the Kleinman-Bylander [2] type, permitting calculations for realistic systems, without significantly degrading the convergence rate. We demonstrate the convergence of the method for the examples C and C₆₀ and present examples of structure calculations of Na and Mg clusters.     

Trap-recharging waves versus damped,forced charge-density oscillations in hexagonal silicon carbide

The structural parameters and hydrostatic pressure coefficients of CdS_xTe_1-x in the two phases, namely zinc-blende and NaCl as well as the transition pressures from zinc-blende to NaCl structures at various S concentrations are presented. The calculations are performed using the full potential linearized augmented plane wave (FP-LAPW) method within the density functional theory (DFT) in the local density approximation (LDA), and two developed refinements, namely the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) of Perdew et al. for the structural properties and Engel-Vosko for the band structure calculations. Detailed comparisons are made with published experimental and theoretical data and show generally good agreement. The present results regarding the studied quantities for compositions x in the 0–1 range (0 < x < 1) and for the NaCl phase are predictions and may serve as a reference for experimental work.     

Structural and elastic properties under pressure effect of the cubic antiperovskite compounds ANCa3 (A = P, As, Sb, and Bi)

Using first-principles density functional calculations, the effect of high pressures, up to 40 GPa, on the structural and elastic properties of ANCa₃, with A = P, As, Sb, and Bi, were studied by means of the pseudo-potential plane-waves method. Calculations were performed within the local density approximation and the generalized gradient approximation for exchange-correlation effects. The lattice constants are in good agreement with the available results. The elastic constants and their pressure dependence are calculated using the static finite strain technique. We derived the bulk and shear moduli, Young's modulus, Poisson's ratio and Lamé's constants for ideal polycrystalline ANCa₃ aggregates. By analysing the ratio between the bulk and shear moduli, we conclude that ANCa₃ compounds are brittle in nature. We estimated the Debye temperature of ANCa₃ from the average sound velocity. This is the first quantitative theoretical prediction of the elastic properties of PNCa₃, AsNCa₃, SbNCa₃, and BiNCa₃ compounds, and it still awaits experimental confirmation.     

Calculated elastic properties of M2AlC (M=Ti, V, Cr, Nb and Ta)

M₂AlC phases, where M is a transition metal, are layered ternary compounds that possess unusual properties. In this paper, we have calculated the elastic properties of M₂AlC, with M=Ti, V, Cr, Nb and Ta, by means of ab initio total energy calculations using the projector augmented-wave method. We have derived the bulk and shear moduli, Young's moduli and Poisson's ratio for ideal polycrystalline M₂AlC aggregates. We have estimated the elastic modulus of Cr₂AlC with 357.7 GPa while the values of all other phases are in the range 309±10 GPa. We suggest that this can be understood based on the calculated bond energies for the M-C bonds. Furthermore, our results indicate a profound elastic anisotropy of M₂AlC even compared to materials with a well-established anisotropic character such as α-alumina. Finally, we have estimated the Debye temperatures of M₂AlC from the average sound velocity.     

Ab initio study of structural,electronic and dynamical properties of MgAuSn

The structural and electronic properties of MgAuSn in the cubic AlLiSi structure have been studied, using density functional theory within the local density approximation. The calculated lattice constant for MgAuSn is found to be in good agreement with its experimental value. Our calculated electronic structure is also compared in detail with a recent tight-binding. A linear-response approach to density-functional theory is used to calculate the phonon spectrum and density of states for MgAuSn.     

First-principles study of the optical properties of PbFX (X = Cl,Br, I) compounds in its matlockite-type structure

We present the results of the ab initio theoretical study of the optical properties for PbFX (X = Cl, Br, I) compounds in its matlockite-type structure using the full potential linearized augmented plane wave (FP-LAPW) method as implemented in the WIEN2K code. We employed generalized gradient approximation (GGA), which is based on exchange-correlation energy optimization to calculate the total energy. Also we have used the Engel-Vosko GGA formalism, which optimizes the corresponding potential for band structure calculations. Our calculations show that the valence band maximum (VBM) and conduction band minimum (CBM) are located at Z resulting in a direct energy gap. We present calculations of the frequency-dependent complex dielectric function ε( ω) and its zero-frequency limit ε₁ ( 0 ). We find that the values of ε₁ ( 0 ) increases with decreasing the energy gap. The reflectivity spectra and absorption coefficient has been calculated and compared with the available experimental data. The optical properties are analyzed and the origin of some of the peaks in the spectra is discussed in terms of the calculated electronic structure.