Novel structures and mechanical properties of Zr_2N:Ab initio description under high pressures

With the formation of structural vacancies,zirconium nitrides(key materials for cutting coatings,super wearresistance,and thermal barrier coatings) display a variety of compositions and phases featuring both cation and nitrogen enrichment.This study presents a systematic exploration of the stable crystal structures of zirconium heminitride combining the evolutionary algorithm method and ab initio density functional theory calculations at pressures of 0 GPa,30 GPa,60 GPa,90 GPa,120 GPa,150 GPa,and 200 GPa.In addition to the previously proposed phases P42/mnm-,Pnnn-,and Cmcm-Zr2 N,five new high-pressure Zr₂N phases of PA/nmm,IA/mcm,P2₁/m,P3 m1,and C2/m are discovered.An enthalpy study of these candidate configurations reveals various structural phase transformations of Zr2 N under pressure.By calculating the elastic constants and phonon dispersion,the mechanical and dynamical stabilities of all predicted structures are examined at ambient and high pressures.To understand the structure-property relationships,the mechanical properties of all Zr₂N compounds are investigated,including the elastic moduli,Vickers hardness,and directional dependence of Young’s modulus.The Cmncm-Zr2 N phase is found to belong to the brittle materials and has the highest Vickers hardness(12.9 GPa) among all candidate phases,while the I4/mcm-Zr2 N phase is the most ductile and has the lowest Vickers hardness(2.1 GPa).Furthermore,the electronic mechanism underlying the diverse mechanical behaviors of Zr2 N structures is discussed by analyzing the partial density of states.     

高压下CaF_2结构相变和光学性质的第一性原理计算

利用基于密度泛函理论的第一性原理方法,计算了在压力作用下CaF2的结构相变和光学性质。结果证实了CaF2的压致结构转变的顺序是从氟石结构(空间群Fm3m)转变到PbCl2型结构(空间群Pnma),然后继续转变为Ni2In型结构(空间群P63/mmc)。在Fm3m和Pnma两种结构中,电子带隙随着压力的增加而增加,而在P63/mmc结构中,带隙随着压力的增加开始下降。实验结果显示,直到210 GPa,CaF2没有发生由绝缘体到金属的转变。据此推测,CaF2的金属化压力高于300 GPa。还讨论了压力对CaF2光学性质的影响。     

The structural, elastic and electronic properties of BiI3: First-principles calculations

The structural, elastic and electronic properties of BiI₃ are investigated using the first-principles pseudopotential calculations within the framework of density functional theory. The calculated equilibrium structural parameters agree well with the experimental values. The results show that rhombohedral R-3 structure is low enthalpy structure at zero pressure. R-3 structure will transform into SbI₃-type structure (space group P2₁/c) at about 7.0 GPa. At zero pressure, BiI₃ with R-3 symmetry meets the mechanical stability criteria, but BiI₃ with P-31 m symmetry is an unstable one mechanically. For R-3 structure, the obtained bulk, shear, and Young’s moduli are 25.6, 15.3 and 38.3 GPa, respectively. BiI₃ presents large elastic anisotropy. Debye temperature of R-3 structure calculated is 181 K. The metallization pressure of R-3 structure is about 133 GPa and that of predicted high pressure phase P2₁/c structure is about 61 GPa, indicating BiI₃’s potential application as a nuclear radiation detector under high pressure environment.     

First-Principles Study of Structural Stabilities, Electronic and Optical Properties of SrF2 under High Pressure

An investigation of structural stabilities, electronic and optical properties of SrF2 under high pressure is conducted using a first-principles calculation based on density functional theory （DFT） with the plane wave basis set as implemented in the CASTEP code. Our results predict that the second high-pressure phase of SrF2 is of a Ni2In- type structure, and demonstrate that the sequence of the pressure-induced phase transition of SrF2 is the fluorite structure （Fm3m） to the PbC12-type structure （Pnma）, and to the Ni2In-type phase （P63/mmc）. The first and second phase transition pressures are 5. 77 and 45.58 GPa, respectively. The energy gap increases initially with pressure in the Fm3m, and begins to decrease in the Pnma phases at 30 GPa. The band gap overlap metallization does not occur up to 210 GPa. The pressure effect on the optical properties is discussed.     

Prediction of Pressure-Induced Structural Transition and Mechanical Properties of Mg Y from First-Principles Calculations

Using the particle swarm optimization algorithm on crystal structure prediction,we first predict that Mg Y alloy undergoes a first-order phase transition from Cs Cl phase to P4/NMM phase at about 55 GPa with a small volume collapse of 2.63%.The dynamical stability of P4/NMM phase at 55 GPa is evaluated by the phonon spectrum calculation and the electronic structure is discussed.The elastic constants are calculated,after which the bulk moduli,shear moduli,Young's modui,and Debye temperature are derived.The brittleness/ductile behavior,and anisotropy of two phases under pressure are discussed in details.Our results show that external pressure can change the brittle behavior to ductile at10 GPa for Cs Cl phase and improve the ductility of Mg Y alloy.As pressure increases,the elastic anisotropy in shear of Cs Cl phase decreases,while that of P4/NMM phase remains nearly constant.The elastic anisotropic constructions of the directional dependences of reciprocals of bulk modulus and Young's modulus are also calculated and discussed.     

压力高达27 GPa下天然奥长石的XRD分析

在室温高达27 GPa压力下对天然奥长石(Na_0.86K_0.02Ca_0.12Mg_0.01(Fe_0.01Al_1.12Si_2.87O₈))粉晶进行了原位同步辐射X光衍射(XRD)测量,获得了样品的状态方程。实验数据表明随着压力增大奥长石样品在大约3.5 GPa发生了三斜向单斜的相变(P1→C2)和在大约10.0 GPa发生了单斜对称相变(C2→C2/m)。样品三个相的体模量计算值分别为K₀=73.8 GPa (K′=10.98), K_(C2)=124 GPa (K′=1.05) 和K_(C2/m)=272 GPa (K′=0.625)。样品的元素组成影响其T-O-T 键角的刚度、M-O键的强度和Si-O-Al键角的弯曲,从而导致奥长石样品在高压行为的特殊变化。三斜相的奥长石晶胞压缩性具明显的各向异性。实验结果表明在冷俯冲带奥长石可能是碱金属和碱土金属深循环的载体。     

Mg2C高压性质的从头计算法研究

运用基于密度泛函理论的平面波赝势方法,结合广义梯度近似,系统地研究了Mg2C在高压下的结构相变、电子结构和光学性质。计算结果表明Mg2C在高压下将发生两次相变,一次是从反萤石到反氯化铅结构的一阶相变在30.09 GPa,另一次是从反氯化铅结构到Ni2In型结构的二阶相变在260 GPa。此外,对压力下电子结构和光学性质的分析表明,Mg2C的带隙宽度随着压力增加而增加,与Mg2Si在压力下表现出金属性有很大不同。     

第一性原理对金的高压相变和零温物态方程的计算

在密度泛函理论下，用缀加平面波加局域轨道方法，分别采用广义梯度近似(GGA)和局域密度近似(LDA)对金的面心立方晶格结构(fcc)、体心立方晶格结构(bcc)和六角密堆积结构(hcp)的结构能量进行了计算.在GGA下，计算得出fcc向hcp和hcp向bcc的相变分别发生在380GPa 和1250GPa；而LDA下相变分别发生在490GPa和790GPa.当计算压强达到2TPa时，bcc在这两种近似下仍然保持稳定的结构.根据不同体积下不同结构的电子态密度的特征，对发生相变的物理原因进行了定性的分析，在此基础上得到了金的零温状态方程. 关键词： 缀加平面波方法 固态相变 电子态密度 物态方程     

Crystal structure prediction of ReN at high pressure: a new incompressible phase

Based on the swarm-intelligence-based CALYPSO method the NbO, R3m and NiAs phases for ReN are predicted. The R3m phase of ReN at high pressure is firstly found. The structural, mechanical and electronic properties of ReN with the three phases are studied systematically. Moreover, it is also firstly found that pressure stimulated ReN to undergo twice phase transitions, from NbO to R3m phase at 43.3?GPa and from R3m to NiAs phase at 53.6?GPa. The three phases of ReN are verified to be mechanically stable and a promising low-compressible material at ambient conditions. According to the electron density of states and electron localization functions we have found that their structural stability and high hardness is on account of the strong covalent bonding of Re-N and N-N.     

Superconducting behavior in compressed solid SiH4 with a layered structure

The electronic and lattice dynamical properties of compressed solid SiH4 have been calculated in the pressure range up to 300 GPa with density functional theory. We find two energetically preferred insulating phases with P2(1)/c and Fdd2 symmetries at low pressures. We demonstrate that the Cmca structure having a layered network is the most likely candidate of the metallic phase of SiH4 over a wide pressure range above 60 GPa. The superconducting transition temperature in this layered metallic phase is found to be in the range of 20-75 K.     

高压下MgN8晶体结构理论模拟与物性研究

基于密度泛函理论第一性原理的方法,使用CALYPSO结构搜索技术结合VASP软件,在0~100 GPa压强范围内对MgN8的晶体结构进行预测,并对预测的结构进行系统研究。结果表明:在常压下,空间群为P4/mbm的α-MgN8晶体结构的焓值最低;当压强达到24.3 GPa和68.3 GPa时发生相变,分别相变成空间群为P4/mnc的β-MgN8相和空间群为Cmcm的γ-MgN8相,两次相变均为对应体积坍塌的一级相变。电子性质计算结果表明,α-MgN8相的导带与价带之间具有3.09 eV的带隙,表明该结构具有非金属性;β相和γ相具有明显的金属特征。Bader电荷转移计算表明,随着压力的增加,Mg原子向N原子转移的电荷逐渐增多。     

Elastic and thermodynamic properties of vanadium nitride under pressure and the effect of metallic bonding on its hardness

By the particle-swarm optimization method, it is predicted that tetragonal P42mc, 141md, and orthorhombic Amm2 phases of vanadium nitride （VN） are energetically more stable than NaCl-type structure at 0 K. The enthalpies of the predicted three new VN phases, along with WC, NaC1, AsNi, CsCl type structures, are calculated each as a function of pressure. It is found that VN exhibits the WC-to-CsCl type phase transition at 256 GPa. For the considered seven crystal- lographic VN phases, the structures, elastic constants, bulk moduli, shear moduli, and Debye temperatures are investigated. Our calculated equilibrium structural parameters are in very good agreement with the available experimental results and the previous theoretical results for the NaC1 phase. The Debye temperatures of VN predicted three novel phases, which are all higher than those of the remaining structures. The elastic constants, thermodynamic properties, and elastic anisotropies of VN under pressure are obtained and the mechanical stabilities are analyzed in detail based on the mechanical stability criteria. Moreover, the effect of metallic bonding on the hardness of VN is also investigated, which shows that VNs in P42mc, 141md, and Amm2 phases are potential superhard phases. Further investigation on the experimental level is highly recommended to confirm our calculations presented in this paper.     

Ab initio study on crystal structure and phase stability of ZrC_2 under high pressure

The structural stabilities and crystal evolution behaviors of the hyper stoichiometric compound ZrC₂(carbon rich;C/Zr> 1.0) are studied under ambient and high pressure conditions using first-principles calculations in combination with the particle-swarm optimization algorithm.Six viable structures of ZrC₂ in P21/c,Cmmm,Cmc2₁,P4₂/nmc,Immm and P6/mmm symmetries are identified.These structures are dynamically stable as their phonon spectra have no imaginary modes at zero pressure or at the selected high-pressure points.Among them,the P21/c phase represents the ground state structure,whereas P21/c,P4₂/nmc,Immm and P6/mmm phases are part of the phase transition series.The phase order and critical pressures of the phase transition are determined to be approximately 300 GPa according to the equation of states and enthalpy.Furthermore,the mechanical and electronic properties are investigated.The P21/c and Cmc2₁ phases display a semi-metal nature,whereas the P4₂/nmc,Immm,P6/mmm and Cmmm phases exhibit a metallic nature.Moreover,the present study reveals considerable information regarding the structural,mechanical and electronic properties of ZrC₂,thereby providing key insights into its material properties and evaluating its behavior in practical applications.     

Optical properties of superhard BC5: First-principles calculations

BC₅ is a newly synthesized superhard material. We present a systematic investigation of optical properties of BC₅ in P3m1 and I-4m2 phases at ambient and high pressure in the framework of density functional theory with the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) in this paper. Optical properties such as dielectric function, refractive index, absorption, reflectivity and electron energy-loss spectrum are obtained successfully. The feature in the spectra of the optical parameters is discussed. Through calculation, we find BC₅ is optically anisotropic. Moreover, the dielectric function exhibits a large change at 70 GPa pressure for P3m1 BC₅ phase, but I-4m2 phase not, indicating the stable electronic structure that the I-4m2 phase possesses.     

RuX2 (X=P、As、Sb) 家族化合物中的压力诱导的超导和拓扑相变

作为热电材料 FeSb2 的姊妹材料，RuSb2 被广泛研究，但以前的工作主要集中在与 FeSb2 的比较上，尚未对 RuSb2 在压力下的性质进行深入研究。在本文中，我们研究了 RuSb2 在压力 下的性质，并探讨了其与 Ru 的磷族化合物 RuP2 和 RuAs2 之间晶体和电子结构的异同。我们 用晶体结构搜索方法结合第一性原理计算，发现该族化合物经历了一系列结构相变：（I）RuSb2： Pnnm → I4/mcm → I4/mmm；(II) RuP2：Pnnm → I41/amd → Cmcm；(III) RuAs2： Pnnm → P-62m。新发现的五个相在高压下都是热力学和动力学稳定的，并表现出金属性。RuSb2 和 RuP2 的四个高压相在泄压到零压后动力学依旧稳定。我们计算得到 RuSb2 的 I4/mcm 和 I4/mmm 相以及 RuP2 的 I41/amd 和 Cmcm 相的超导转变温度在 0 GPa 时分别约为 7.3 K、 10.9 K、13.0 K 和 10.1 K。另外，RuSb2 的 I4/mcm 和 I4/mmm 相以及 RuP2 的 I41/amd 相还具有拓扑非平庸的表面态。我们的研究表明，压力是调节 Ru 的磷族化合物结构、电子和超 导性质的有效方法。     

First-Principles Study of Pressure-Induced Phase Transition in CuGaO<Subscript>2</Subscript>

We have studied the structural, elastic, electronic properties, and pressure-induced phase transition of CuGaO₂ by using the plane-wave ultrasoft pseudopotential technique based on the first-principles density-functional theory (DFT). The obtained ground state properties of three phases were in agreement with previous works. The calculated enthalpy variations with pressure showed that the structural phase transition (β → 3R/2H) appeared at 65.5 ± 1 GPa. The changes in volume and band gap of β phase showed that there was a break between 30 and 40 GPa. The independent elastic constants of three phases were calculated. The 3R, 2H, and β phases were all mechanical stability and behaved in ductile manner under zero pressure.     

Atomistic Simulation of the Equation of State of SrF 2 Using Electron Gas Interionic Potentials

We have determined the equation of state (EOS) of SrF 2 in the cubic (C1, Fm3m ) and orthorhombic (C23, Pbnm ) phases using Electron Gas Interionic Potentials (EGIP) that incorporate many-body energy components. Thermal effects are included by means of a quasi-harmonic Debye model. The zero pressure unit cell length ( a 0 ), lattice energy ( E latt ), bulk modulus ( B 0 ), and EOS of the C1 phase are predicted in good agreement with the observed data. Moreover, the computed EOS satisfy very well the empirical Vinet EOS. Fittings of m / m 0 m p data ( m = a, b, c ) to linear forms of the Vinet EOS reveal that SrF 2 (C23) is more compressible along the b and c axes than along the a direction. Finally, the {\rm C1}\rightleftharpoons {\rm C23} transition is predicted to occur at p t =3.92 GPa, which is between the observed direct ( p t =5.0 GPa) and reverse C1 ( p t =1.7 GPa) phase transitions.     

High volumetric hydrogen density phases of magnesium borohydride at high-pressure: A first-principles study

The previously proposed theoretical and experimental structures,bond characterization,and compressibility of Mg(BH 4) 2 in a pressure range from 0 to 10 GPa are studied by ab initio density-functional calculations.It is found that the ambient pressure phases of meta-stable I4 1 /amd and unstable P-3m1 proposed recently are extra stable and cannot decompose under high pressure.Enthalpy calculation indicates that the ground state of F 222 structure proposed by Zhou et al.[2009 Phys.Rev.B 79 212102] will transfer to I4 1 /amd at 0.7 GPa,and then to a P-3m1 structure at 6.3 GPa.The experimental P 6 1 22 structure(α-phase) transfers to I4 1 /amd at 1.2 GPa.Furthermore,both I4 1 /amd and P-3m1 can exist as high volumetric hydrogen density phases at low pressure.Their theoretical volumetric hydrogen densities reach 146.351 g H 2 /L and 134.028 g H 2 /L at ambient pressure,respectively.The calculated phonon dispersion curve shows that the I4 1 /amd phase is dynamically stable in a pressure range from 0 to 4 GPa and the P-3m1 phase is stable at pressures higher than 1 GPa.So the I4 1 /amd phase may be synthesized under high pressure and retained to ambient pressure.Energy band structures show that they are both always ionic crystalline and insulating with a band-gap of about 5 eV in this pressure range.In addition,they each have an anisotropic compressibility.The c axis of these structures is easy to compress.Especially,the c axis and volume of P-3m1 phase are extraordinarily compressible,showing that compression along the c axis can increase the volumetric hydrogen content for both I4 1 /amd and P-3m1 structures.     

Ab initio studies of copper hydrides under high pressure

The crystal structure, electronic structure, and superconductivity of copper hydrides at high pressure have been studied by ab initio calculation. Consistent with experimental report, results show that the predicted stoichiometry Cu₂H with the P-3m1 space group is stable above 16.8 GPa. The stoichiometry of CuH with the Fm-3m space group is predicted to be synthesized above 30 GPa, but it is metastable and dynamical instable up to 120 GPa. The electronic band calculations reveal that Cu₂H is a good metal at a stable pressure range, whereas CuH is an insulator. Moreover, the other hydrogenrich compounds CuH₂ and CuH₃ are thermodynamically and dynamically unstable, respectively. The calculated superconducting transition temperature (T _c) of Cu₂H at 40 GPa is 0.028 K by using the Allen-Dynes modified McMillan equation.     

高压下γ'-Fe4N晶态合金的声子稳定性与磁性

利用基于密度泛函理论的第一性原理研究了高压下有序晶态γ’-Fe₄N合金的晶格动力学稳定性与磁性. 对比没有考虑磁性的γ’-Fe₄N的声子谱, 得出压力小于1 GPa时, 自发磁化诱导了铁磁相γ’-Fe₄N基态晶格动力学稳定. 压力在1.03-31.5 GPa时, Σ线上的点(0.37, 0.37, 0)、对称点X和M 上相继出现了声子谱软化现象. 压力在31.5-60.8 GPa时, 压致效应与自发磁化对诸原子的作用达到了稳定平衡, 表现出了声子谱稳定. 压力大于61.3 GPa时, 随着压力的增大压力诱导体系动力学不稳定性越强. 通过软模相变理论对于γ’-Fe₄N, 在10 GPa下的声学支声子的M点处软化现象的处理, 发现了动力学稳定的高压新相P2/m-Fe₄N. 压力小于1 GPa时高压新相P2/m-Fe₄N 是热力学稳定的相, 且磁矩与γ’-Fe₄N的磁矩几乎相同. 2.9-19 GPa时, P2/m相的焓比γ’相的焓小, 基态结构更稳定. 大于20 GPa时, 两相磁矩几乎相同.