Lattice dynamics of an anharmonic crystal: evidence for interactions between atomic vibrations at high temperatures

In studying the lattice dynamics of a strongly anharmonic crystal, we solve a set of nonlinear Langevin equations for interacting oscillators while a multiwell potential is calculated in the displacive limit from the first principles. The model applied to the peculiar vibrations of beta-Zr along [111] allows us to analyze all contributions to the spectral density and their influence on each other. We predict the effect of induced anharmonicity for quick vibrations due to their interaction with intrinsically anharmonic slow vibrations. This effect results in the broadband distribution in energy of inelastic neutron scattering known as the symmetry-forbidden phonon-branch splitting.