Molecular dynamics simulation of silver nanoparticles in a europium doped sodosilicate glass

Molecular dynamics simulation is applied to an europium doped sodosilicate glass containing silver [(Na–Ag)2O–SiO2–Eu2O3]. The silver is implanted in substitution of Na, simulating an ionic exchange. For ionic interactions a modified Born–Mayer–Huggins potential was employed. For the Ag–Ag interaction, a Lennard-Jones (LJ) potential is applied, while for the Eu–Ag interaction, a modified LJ potential is introduced. The particle size increases with the annealing treatment and follows a lognormal law. After 75 ps the average particle size reaches 5.8 atoms (4.8 for Ag and 1.0 for Eu), and it is found that the europium is preferentially situated on these nanoclusters

First principles calculations of structural, electronic and thermodynamic properties of SrS, SrSe, SrTe compounds and SrS1−xSex alloy

AbstractThe ab initio full potential linearized augmented plane wave (FP-LAPW) method within density functional theory was applied to study the structural and electronic properties of the compounds SrS, SrSe, SrTe and their alloy SrS1−xSex in the NaCl structure. Results are obtained using both the local density approximation (LDA) and the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) for the exchange-correlation potentials. The ground-state properties, like lattice constant and bulk modulus obtained from our calculations agree very well with experimental and other theoretical calculations. We present the main features of electronic properties, where the electronic band structure shows that the fundamental energy gap is indirect (Γ→X). Moreover the alternative form of GGA proposed by Engel and Vosko (GGA-EV) is also used for band structure calculations. Results obtained with this approximation show that significant improvement over other theoretical work are closer to the experimental data. The effect of composition on lattice parameter and bulk modulus was investigated.Deviations of the lattice constant from Vegard’s law and the bulk modulus from linear concentration dependence were observed for the alloy. Moreover, the microscopic origins of the gap bowing were explained. In addition the thermodynamic stability of the alloy was investigated by calculating the critical temperature for SrS1−xSex alloy

Molecular dynamics simulation of silver nanoparticles in a europium doped sodosilicate glass

International audienceMolecular dynamics simulation is applied to an europium doped sodosilicate glass containing silver [(Na–Ag)2O–SiO2–Eu2O3]. The silver is implanted in substitution of Na, simulating an ionic exchange. For ionic interactions a modified Born–Mayer–Huggins potential was employed. For the Ag–Ag interaction, a Lennard-Jones (LJ) potential is applied, while for the Eu–Ag interaction, a modified LJ potential is introduced. The particle size increases with the annealing treatment and follows a lognormal law. After 75 ps the average particle size reaches 5.8 atoms (4.8 for Ag and 1.0 for Eu), and it is found that the europium is preferentially situated on these nanoclusters.</p

Structural, electronic, elastic, and thermal properties of CaNiH3 perovskite obtained from first-principles calculations

A theoretical study of the structural, elastic, electronic, mechanical, and thermal properties of the perovskite-type hydride CaNiH3 is presented. This study is carried out via first-principles full potential (FP) linearized augmented plane wave plus local orbital (LAPW+lo) method designed within the density functional theory (DFT). To treat the exchange-correlation energy/potential for the total energy calculations, the local density approximation (LDA) of Perdew-Wang (PW) and the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) of Perdew-Burke-Ernzerhof (PBE) are used. The three independent elastic constants (C 11, C 12, and C 44) are calculated from the direct computation of the stresses generated by small strains. Besides, we report the variation of the elastic constants as a function of pressure as well. From the calculated elastic constants, the mechanical character of CaNiH3 is predicted. Pertaining to the thermal properties, the Debye temperature is estimated from the average sound velocity. To further comprehend this compound, the quasi-harmonic Debye model is used to analyze the thermal properties. From the calculations, we find that the obtained results of the lattice constant (a 0), bulk modulus (B 0), and its pressure derivative () are in good agreement with the available theoretical as well as experimental results. Similarly, the obtained electronic band structure demonstrates the metallic character of this perovskite-type hydride

First-principles computational study on structural, elastic, magnetic, electronic, and thermoelectric properties of Co

In this research work, first-principles computational study is performed on the structural, elastic, thermal, magnetic, electronic, and thermoelectric properties of the ternary Heusler compound Co2MnGe in its cubic phase. For this purpose, the “full potential linearized augmented plane-wave FP-L(APW + lo)” approach realized in the WIEN2k code is employed. To determine total energy, the exchange–correlation energy/potential part is treated within the “Perdew–Burke–Ernzerhof (PBE)” parameterized approach of “generalized gradient approximation (GGA) and modified Becke–Johnson (mBJ)” schemes. The magnetic phase stability was predicted via quantum mechanically total energy calculations for both non-magnetic and magnetic phases. Our obtained results for total energy show that the title material is stable in the ferromagnetic phase. The analysis of the profile of density of states (DOS), band structure plots, and the calculations of spin magnetic moment endorse the semi-metallic nature of the title compound. Calculations of the elastic constants, Cij, and results of the elastic moduli, such as bulk modulus (B), shear modulus (G), Young modulus (E), Poisson ratio (ν), and ratio B/G, are reported and analyzed as well. Gibbs computational code based on the “quasi-harmonic Debye model” is used to explore thermal properties, whereas parameters to understand the thermoelectric behavior, BoltzTrap code based on Boltzmann theory for transport properties is applied. Besides that, the chemical potential effect on the Seebeck coefficient and power factor is also analyzed at temperatures 300, 600, and 900 K. The results of thermoelectric parameters of the title Heusler compound, for the spin-down channel, are found good; hence, the obtained results highlight the title compound as a potential candidate for thermoelectric devices

Ab initio calculations of the structural, electronic, thermodynamic and thermal properties of BaSe1-xTex alloys

The alkaline earth metal chalcogenides are being intensively investigated because of their advanced technological applications, for example in photoluminescent devices. In this study, the structural, electronic, thermodynamic and thermal properties of the BaSe1?x Te x alloys at alloying composition x?=?0, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75 and 1 are investigated. The full potential linearized augmented plane wave plus local orbital method designed within the density functional theory was used to perform the total energy calculations. In this research work the effect of the composition on the results of the parameters and bulk modulus as well as on the band gap energy is analyzed. From our results, we found a deviation of the obtained results for the lattice constants from Vegard's law as well as a deviation of the value of the bulk modulus from the linear concentration dependence. We also carried out a microscopic analysis of the origin of the band gap energy bowing parameter. Furthermore, the thermodynamic stability of the considered alloys was explored through the measurement of the miscibility critical temperature. The quasi-harmonic Debye model, as implemented in the Gibbs code, was used to predict the thermal properties of the BaSe1?x Te x alloys, and these investigations comprise our first theoretical predictions concerning the BaSe1?x Te x alloys

Ab initio calculations of the structural, electronic, thermodynamic and thermal properties of BaSe1-xTe x alloys

The alkaline earth metal chalcogenides are being intensively investigated because of their advanced technological applications, for example in photoluminescent devices. In this study, the structural, electronic, thermodynamic and thermal properties of the BaSe1-xTe x alloys at alloying composition x = 0, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75 and 1 are investigated. The full potential linearized augmented plane wave plus local orbital method designed within the density functional theory was used to perform the total energy calculations. In this research work the effect of the composition on the results of the parameters and bulk modulus as well as on the band gap energy is analyzed. From our results, we found a deviation of the obtained results for the lattice constants from Vegard's law as well as a deviation of the value of the bulk modulus from the linear concentration dependence. We also carried out a microscopic analysis of the origin of the band gap energy bowing parameter. Furthermore, the thermodynamic stability of the considered alloys was explored through the measurement of the miscibility critical temperature. The quasi-harmonic Debye model, as implemented in the Gibbs code, was used to predict the thermal properties of the BaSe1-xTe x alloys, and these investigations comprise our first theoretical predictions concerning the BaSe1-xTe x alloys

First-principles computations of YxGa1−x As-ternary alloys: a study on structural, electronic, optical and elastic properties

In this work, the first-principles computational study on the structural, elastic, electronic and optical properties of Y xGa 1 - xAs as a function of yttrium concentration (x) is presented. The computations are performed using the full-potential linearized augmented plane wave plus local orbital method designed within density functional theory. Firstly, we performed our calculations on the most stable phases, NaCl and zinc blende, then their transition pressure for each concentration is determined and analysed. Our computed results for the zero yttrium concentration are found consistent with the available experimental measurements as well as with theoretical predictions. Moreover, the dependencies of these parameters upon yttrium concentration (x) were found to be non-linear. We also report computed results on electronic-band structure, electronic energy band gap results and density of states. A systematic study on optical properties to analyse its optoelectronic character and elastic properties is presented. © 2019, Indian Academy of Sciences