FCC金属结构稳定性和声子谱的MAEAM研究

应用改进分析型嵌入原子方法(MAEAM)计算fcc金属的结构稳定性和声子谱.考虑更远邻原子之间的相互作用,提出新的两体势函数,并采用新的截尾处理函数和加强光滑连接条件.通过拟合单空位迁移能、结合能、三个独立弹性常数及晶体平衡条件,确定了模型参数.在体积不变条件下,计算金属不同结构的能量,说明Ag、Al、Au、Cu、Ir、Ni、Pd、Pt和Rh的fcc结构比较稳定.它们的能量-体积曲线与Rose方程结果基本-致,进-步说明了体积变化时的结构稳定性.同时发现[100]、[110]和[111]三个方向声子谱的计算结果符合实验值和其它计算结果.     

Computer simulation of symmetrical tilt grain boundaries in noble metals with MAEAM

This paper reports that an atomic scale study of [\bar {1}10] symmetrical tilt grain boundary (STGB) has been made with modified analytical embedded atom method (MAEAM) for 44 planes in three noble metals Au, Ag and Cu. For each metal, the energies of two crystals ideally joined together are unrealistically high due to very short distance between atoms near the grain boundary (GB) plane. A relative slide between grains in the GB plane results in a significant decrease in GB energy and a minimum value is obtained at specific translation distance. The minimum energy of Cu is much higher than that of Ag and Au, while the minimum energy of Ag is slightly higher than that of Au. For all the three metals, the three lowest energies correspond to identical (111), \mbox(113) and \mbox(331) boundary successively for two translations considered; from minimization of GB energy, these boundaries should be preferable in [\bar {1}10] STGB for noble metals. This is consistent with the experimental results. In addition, the minimum energy increases with increasing reciprocal planar coincidence density \Sigma, but decreases with increasing relative interplanar distance d /a.     

面心立方金属声子色散曲线的数值模拟

把分析型嵌入原子法（AEAM）和晶格动力学理论相结合,在三维布喇菲晶格振动模型的基础上模拟了面心立方金属Au、Ag、Pt、Cu和Ni沿[00ζ]、[0ζζ]、[ζζζ]和[0ζ1]4个对称方向的声子色散曲线.结果表明：模拟曲线与实验点线符合的较好,特别在低频附近二者几乎一致,而在纵波模（L）q=（001）2π/a,q=...     

Vibrational and thermodynamic properties of metals from a model embedded-atom potential

This work provides the first systematic test of validity of the embedded-atom potentials of Mei et al. [Phys. Rev. B 43 (1991) 4653], via a complete study of the vibrational and thermodynamic properties of isoelectronic transition (Ni, Pd, Pt) and noble (Cu, Ag, Au) metals. Phonon dispersion curves and thermal properties are studied within the quasiharmonic approximation. Results for the temperature-dependence of the lattice constants, coefficients of linear thermal expansion, isothermal and adiabatic bulk moduli, heat capacities at constant volume and constant pressure, Debye temperatures and Grüneisen parameters are presented. Electronic contribution to the specific heat is included explicitly via density-functional calculation. The calculated phonon frequencies for Ag and Cu agree well with the results from inelastic neutron scattering experiments. Despite less satisfactory agreement between calculated and measured phonon frequencies for the other four metals, isothermal and adiabatic bulk moduli and the specific heats of all metals are reproduced reasonably well by the model, while the Grüneisen parameter and Debye temperature are underestimated by about 10%. The coefficient of linear thermal expansion is underestimated with respect to measured values in most cases except for Pt and Au. The results are good for Pt up to 1000 K and for Au up to 500 K.     

Energy calculation of (0 1 1) twist grain boundary in noble metals

With modified analytical embedded atom method (MAEAM), the energy of (0 1 1) twist grain boundary (GB) has been calculated for three noble metals Cu, Ag and Au. The results show that the unrelaxed energy keeps almost constant with twist angle θ except several cusps at low Σ boundaries. The GB energies drop significantly after expansion perpendicular to the boundary. In-boundary translation results in a periodic energy variation and the rectangular period is 1/Σ of their own CSL smallest unit cell. Three specific positions, the corners or centre of the periodic rectangle, or the midpoints of the sides, are preferable in GB translation.     

Phonon dispersion on Ag(100) surface:A modified analytic embedded atom method study

Within the harmonic approximation, the analytic expression of the dynamical matrix is derived based on the modified analytic embedded atom method(MAEAM) and the dynamics theory of surface lattice. The surface phonon dispersions along three major symmetry directionsΓˉXˉ, Γˉ Mˉ, and Xˉ Mˉ are calculated for the clean Ag(100) surface by using our derived formulas. We then discuss the polarization and localization of surface modes at points Xˉ and Mˉ by plotting the squared polarization vectors as a function of the layer index. The phonon frequencies of the surface modes calculated by MAEAM are compared with the available experimental and other theoretical data. It is found that the present results are generally in agreement with the referenced experimental or theoretical results, with a maximum deviation of 10.4%. The agreement shows that the modified analytic embedded atom method is a reasonable many-body potential model to quickly describe the surface lattice vibration. It also lays a significant foundation for studying the surface lattice vibration in other metals.     

On the phonon frequencies of copper in off symmetry directions

A previously proposed five parameter phenomenological screened shell model for the lattice dynamics of cubic metals is applied to compute the phonon frequencies of copper in the off-symmetry directions. The theoretical results are compared with the experimental findings for the first time. It has been pointed out that a model which gives excellent results in the symmetry directions may not necessarily reproduce similar results in the off-symmetry directions.     

DFT calculations of adenine adsorption on coin metal (1 1 0) surfaces

Density functional theory is used to analyze in detail the adsorption of the adenine molecule on the (1 1 0) surfaces of Cu, Ag, and Au. While the adsorption configurations are similar in all three cases – the molecule bonds via two nitrogen atoms to the substrate – the details like charge transfer or local strain a rather different. The molecule–substrate interaction in case of Cu is stronger than for the more noble metals Ag and Au. Longe-range dispersion forces stabilize the adsorption configuration in dependence on the specific adsorption geometry. In case of Ag and Au, relativistic effects are found to be important.     

Improvement of modified analytic embedded atom method potentials for noble metals and Cu

The modified analytic embedded atom model (EAM) potentials considering farther neighbor atoms are improved for the noble metals (Ag, Au, Pt, Pd, Rh) and Cu. We not only adopt an end processing function and an enhanced smooth continuous condition for the pair potential, but also adjust the model parameters of multi-body potential by fitting a cohesive energy, a mono-vacancy formation energy, the Rose equation curve for the cohesive energy as a function of lattice parameter, a structure energy difference, elastic parameters and an equilibrium condition of crystal. The calculation results of structure energy differences misfit the experiment data for the noble metals and Cu in the unimproved EAM, because anyone of these differences have not been considered in the calculation of its model parameters. After the modification, the model showed better simulation results for the noble metals and Cu.     

Surface plasma waves in the noble metals

The dispersoon curves for surface plasma waves (SPW) in Ag have been determined from calculated reflectivity minima as exhibited by attenuated total reflection (ATR spectra) for the prism-metal-air (PMA) configuration and from the direct calculation of the dispersion relation for the same configuration. Comparison is made with published results. The dispersion curves for Au and Cu have been determined for the same configuration from calculated ATR spectra and verified experimentally. Comparison is made with the direct calculation of the dispersion relation. The direct calculation yields two types of modes; namely the surface or Brewster mode and the virtual mode. Both modes are discussed. The marked effect of small electronic damping as exhibited by Ag and moderate electronic damping as exhibited by Au and Cu upon the PMA dispersion curves from ATR spectra is examined. Finally the direct calculation of the dielectric shift (perturbing effect of the prism-metal surface upon the active metal-air surface dispersion curve) is presented for the three metals as a function of film thickness and photon energy.     

Surface vibrations on face centered cubic metal surfaces: the (111) surfaces

We have studied the dynamics of atom motion at face centered metal (111) surfaces. The interactions between atoms are modelled with central forces and angle bending forces. Results for frequencies and polarizations of surface modes are presented for the following metals: Ag, Al, Au, Cu, Ni, Pd and Pt. In addition, the results obtained for phonon spectral densities are presented for nickel.     

Atomistic simulation of point defects at low-index surfaces of noble metals

The formation energies and the migration energies of an isolated vacancy and adatom formed on low-index surfaces are calculated with MAEAM for three noble metals Cu, Ag and Au. The results indicate that the formation energies of an isolated vacancy or adatom increase with increasing atom density in the sequence (1 1 0) → (1 0 0) → (1 1 1), and it is more difficult to form an adatom than to form a vacancy at the same surface. For the mobility of an isolated vacancy, the migration energy grows in the sequence (1 0 0) → (1 1 0) → (1 1 1) for each noble metal. However, a much less migration energy is obtained for the migration of an adatom on (1 1 1) surface.     

Towards understanding the dissolving behaviors of oxygen at finite temperature in Au and Ag: First-principles total energy and phonon spectrum calculations

By first-principles total energy and vibration spectrum calculations, we predict the impurity oxygen (O) dissolving behaviors at-finite temperature in Au and Ag. The temperature effect is considered by the lattice expansion and phonon vibration energy. An O atom is invariably preferable to stay at the tetrahedral interstitial site rather than the octahedral interstitial site over the whole temperature regime 200–1200 K in two metals. The O solution energy referring to the static O chemical potential μ_O (T=?0 K) decreases with temperature, while the O solution energy in reference to the temperature-dependent O chemical potential μ_O (T≠0 K) increases with the increasing temperature. Meanwhile, phonon vibration energy plays a crucial role in the O dissolving behavior with temperature. Based on the obtained temperature-dependent O solution energy, we predict the O concentration over the temperature range 200–1200 K in both metals. Due to that the above data of O dissolving behaviors are rather scarce in both experiment and calculation, our theoretical predictions can provide a very useful reference for purification of Au and Ag as noble metals in industry.     

The energy and structure of (0 0 1) twist grain boundary in noble metals

The relaxed energy and structure of (0 0 1) twist grain boundary (GB) in noble metals Au, Ag and Cu are simulated by the MAEAM. In-boundary translation between two adjacent grains results in a periodic energy variation and the period is a square with the side length L_Σ/Σ. The lowest energy appears when the two grains are translated relatively to either corner or center of the periodic square. The relaxed GB energy increases smoothly for low-angle boundaries and levels off for larger-angle boundaries except a cusp appeared at θ = 36.87° (Σ = 5). After relaxation, the symmetry of the GB structure is not changed but the displacement of the atoms parallel to the GB plane decreases with increasing the distance of the atoms from the GB plane.     

New magic numbers in metallic clusters: an unexpected metal dependence

Using a many-body tight-binding potential within the second moment approximation in a quenched molecular dynamics simulation, we calculate the internal energy of free Cu, Ag and Au clusters of various sizes and morphologies. We find that the icosahedral structure, which is the equilibrium shape for small sizes at least for Cu and Ag, adopts a very inhomogeneous atomic relaxation. More surprisingly, introducing a vacancy at the center lowers the mean energy per atom for sufficiently large size icosahedra. This means that above a critical size, which decreases from Cu to Au, the icosahedron admits a constitutional vacancy. Taking into account the stability domain of the icosahedron relative to the fcc structure (namely the Wulff polyhedron), we find that there is a stability range of size for Cu and Ag icosahedra with a central vacancy, but not for Au icosahedra. This trend along the noble metal column is discussed in view of tight-binding potential parameters.     

A model pseudopotential for noble metals

A simple model pseudopotential has been proposed for noble metals and used to calculate the form factor, band gap, liquid metal resistivity and phonon dispersion curves for gold. A reasonably good agreement is found between the computed and experimental results.     

Angle-dependent ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy of sputter cleaned polycrystalline noble metals

Polycrystalline noble metal films are commonly used in practical applications across a variety of different fields. However, the surface electronic structure of the noble metals has primarily only been studied on single crystal substrates. In addition, sputter cleaned polycrystalline noble metal films are commonly used substrates in ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS) studies, but have yet to be systematically studied in terms of their photoemission anisotropy. The angle-dependence of the valence band spectra of sputter cleaned polycrystalline Au, Ag and Cu were studied using angle-resolved UPS. It is found that the photoemission is anisotropic with respect to photoelectron take-off angle. The results for Ag and Cu are in good agreement with previous reports of surface d-band narrowing in polycrystalline noble metal films. However, significant anisotropies in the d-band, s-band and Fermi edge of sputter cleaned Au are observed, which cannot be attributed to surface d-band narrowing alone. The unusual results for Au are attributed to drastic changes in the film morphology near the surface as a result of sputter cleaning.     

Three body force model for lattice dynamics of copper

Phonon frequencies of copper are calculated in both symmetry and certain off-symmetry directions using a five parameter three body force model. The validity of the model is shown by a direct comparison with the recent measurements of the off-symmetry phonon frequencies.     

Inelastic life-time of the conduction electrons in some noble metal films

Magneto-conductance measurements of thin films of Cu, Ag and Au are reported. The measurements are evaluated with the theory of weak localization and yield for the noble metals a very good agreement with the theory in the whole field range up to 5T. No adjustment of the theoretical prefactor is necessary. The magneto-conductance curves show a pronounced structure caused by spin-orbit coupling. The measurements yield the inelastic life-time and the spin-orbit coupling of the conduction electrons for Cu, Ag and Au. _i obeys a 1/T ^p law withp=1.65.