18,481 research outputs found
Predictive coupled-cluster isomer orderings for some SiC () clusters; A pragmatic comparison between DFT and complete basis limit coupled-cluster benchmarks
The accurate determination of the preferred
isomer is important to guide experimental efforts directed towards synthesizing
SiC nano-wires and related polymer structures which are anticipated to be
highly efficient exciton materials for opto-electronic devices. In order to
definitively identify preferred isomeric structures for silicon carbon
nano-clusters, highly accurate geometries, energies and harmonic zero point
energies have been computed using coupled-cluster theory with systematic
extrapolation to the complete basis limit for set of silicon carbon clusters
ranging in size from SiC to . It is found that
post-MBPT(2) correlation energy plays a significant role in obtaining converged
relative isomer energies, suggesting that predictions using low rung density
functional methods will not have adequate accuracy. Utilizing the best
composite coupled-cluster energy that is still computationally feasible,
entailing a 3-4 SCF and CCSD extrapolation with triple- (T) correlation,
the {\it closo} isomer is identified to be the
preferred isomer in support of previous calculations [J. Chem. Phys. 2015, 142,
034303]. Additionally we have investigated more pragmatic approaches to
obtaining accurate silicon carbide isomer energies, including the use of frozen
natural orbital coupled-cluster theory and several rungs of standard and
double-hybrid density functional theory. Frozen natural orbitals as a way to
compute post MBPT(2) correlation energy is found to be an excellent balance
between efficiency and accuracy
Thermodynamically stable lithium silicides and germanides from density-functional theory calculations
Density-functional-theory (DFT) calculations have been performed on the Li-Si
and Li-Ge systems. Lithiated Si and Ge, including their metastable phases, play
an important technological r\^ole as Li-ion battery (LIB) anodes. The
calculations comprise structural optimisations on crystal structures obtained
by swapping atomic species to Li-Si and Li-Ge from the X-Y structures in the
International Crystal Structure Database, where X={Li,Na,K,Rb,Cs} and
Y={Si,Ge,Sn,Pb}. To complement this at various Li-Si and Li-Ge stoichiometries,
ab initio random structure searching (AIRSS) was also performed. Between the
ground-state stoichiometries, including the recently found LiSi
phase, the average voltages were calculated, indicating that germanium may be a
safer alternative to silicon anodes in LIB, due to its higher lithium insertion
voltage. Calculations predict high-density LiSi and LiGe
layered phases which become the ground state above 2.5 and 5 GPa
respectively and reveal silicon and germanium's propensity to form dumbbells in
the LiSi, stoichiometry range. DFT predicts the stability of
the LiGe , LiGe and LiGe
phases and several new Li-Ge compounds, with stoichiometries LiGe,
LiGe, LiGe and LiGe.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figure
Optical properties of cosmic dust analogs: A review
Nanometer- and micrometer-sized solid particles play an important role in the
evolutionary cycle of stars and interstellar matter. The optical properties of
cosmic grains determine the interaction of the radiation field with the solids,
thereby regulating the temperature structure and spectral appearance of dusty
regions. Radiation pressure on dust grains and their collisions with the gas
atoms and molecules can drive powerful winds. The analysis of observed spectral
features, especially in the infrared wavelength range, provides important
information on grain size, composition and structure as well as temperature and
spatial distribution of the material.
The relevant optical data for interstellar, circumstellar, and protoplanetary
grains can be obtained by measurements on cosmic dust analogs in the laboratory
or can be calculated from grain models based on optical constants. Both
approaches have made progress in the last years, triggered by the need to
interpret increasingly detailed high-quality astronomical observations. The
statistical theoretical approach, spectroscopic experiments at variable
temperature and absorption spectroscopy of aerosol particulates play an
important role for the successful application of the data in dust astrophysics.Comment: 18 pages, 6 figures, invited review for Journal of Nanophotonics,
Special Section to honour C.F. Bohre
Optical excitations in organic molecules, clusters and defects studied by first-principles Green's function methods
Spectroscopic and optical properties of nanosystems and point defects are
discussed within the framework of Green's function methods. We use an approach
based on evaluating the self-energy in the so-called GW approximation and
solving the Bethe-Salpeter equation in the space of single-particle
transitions. Plasmon-pole models or numerical energy integration, which have
been used in most of the previous GW calculations, are not used. Fourier
transforms of the dielectric function are also avoided. This approach is
applied to benzene, naphthalene, passivated silicon clusters (containing more
than one hundred atoms), and the F center in LiCl. In the latter, excitonic
effects and the defect line are identified in the energy-resolved
dielectric function. We also compare optical spectra obtained by solving the
Bethe-Salpeter equation and by using time-dependent density functional theory
in the local, adiabatic approximation. From this comparison, we conclude that
both methods give similar predictions for optical excitations in benzene and
naphthalene, but they differ in the spectra of small silicon clusters. As
cluster size increases, both methods predict very low cross section for
photoabsorption in the optical and near ultra-violet ranges. For the larger
clusters, the computed cross section shows a slow increase as function of
photon frequency. Ionization potentials and electron affinities of molecules
and clusters are also calculated.Comment: 9 figures, 5 tables, to appear in Phys. Rev. B, 200
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