2,259 research outputs found
Non-Nominal Value of the Dynamical Effective Charge in Alkaline-Earth Oxides
We calculate ab-initio the electronic states and the Born dynamical charge Z*
of the alkaline-earth oxides in the local-density approximation. We investigate
the trend of increasing Z* values through the series, using band-by-band
decompositions and computational experiments performed on fake materials with
artificially-modified covalence. The deviations of Z* from the nominal value 2
are due to the increasing interaction between O 2p orbitals and unoccupied
cation d states. We also explain the variations, along the series, of the
individual contributions to Z* arising from the occupied band manifolds.Comment: 12 pages Latex, plus 2 Postscript figure
Bond breaking with auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo
Bond stretching mimics different levels of electron correlation and provides
a challenging testbed for approximate many-body computational methods. Using
the recently developed phaseless auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo (AF QMC)
method, we examine bond stretching in the well-studied molecules BH and N,
and in the H chain. To control the sign/phase problem, the phaseless AF
QMC method constrains the paths in the auxiliary-field path integrals with an
approximate phase condition that depends on a trial wave function. With single
Slater determinants from unrestricted Hartree-Fock (UHF) as trial wave
function, the phaseless AF QMC method generally gives better overall accuracy
and a more uniform behavior than the coupled cluster CCSD(T) method in mapping
the potential-energy curve. In both BH and N, we also study the use of
multiple-determinant trial wave functions from multi-configuration
self-consistent-field (MCSCF) calculations. The increase in computational cost
versus the gain in statistical and systematic accuracy are examined. With such
trial wave functions, excellent results are obtained across the entire region
between equilibrium and the dissociation limit.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures and 3 tables. Submitted to JC
Quantum Monte Carlo method using phase-free random walks with Slater determinants
We develop a quantum Monte Carlo method for many fermions that allows the use
of any one-particle basis. It projects out the ground state by random walks in
the space of Slater determinants. An approximate approach is formulated to
control the phase problem with a trial wave function . Using
plane-wave basis and non-local pseudopotentials, we apply the method to Si
atom, dimer, and 2, 16, 54 atom (216 electrons) bulk supercells. Single Slater
determinant wave functions from density functional theory calculations were
used as with no additional optimization. The calculated binding
energy of Si2 and cohesive energy of bulk Si are in excellent agreement with
experiments and are comparable to the best existing theoretical results.Comment: 5 pages, Latex, with 1 fi
High sensitivity of 17O NMR to p-d hybridization in transition metal perovskites: first principles calculations of large anisotropic chemical shielding
A first principles embedded cluster approach is used to calculate O chemical
shielding tensors, sigma, in prototypical transition metal oxide ABO_3
perovskite crystals. Our principal findings are 1) a large anisotropy of sigma
between deshielded sigma_x ~ sigma_y and shielded sigma_z components (z along
the Ti-O bond); 2) a nearly linear variation, across all the systems studied,
of the isotropic sigma_iso and uniaxial sigma_ax components, as a function of
the B-O-B bond asymmetry. We show that the anisotropy and linear variation
arise from large paramagnetic contributions to sigma_x and sigma_y due to
virtual transitions between O(2p) and unoccupied B(nd) states. The calculated
isotropic delta_iso and uniaxial delta_ax chemical shifts are in good agreement
with recent BaTiO_3 and SrTiO_3 single crystal 17O NMR measurements. In PbTiO_3
and PbZrO_3, calculated delta_iso are also in good agreement with NMR powder
spectrum measurements. In PbZrO_3, delta_iso calculations of the five
chemically distinct sites indicate a correction of the experimental
assignments. The strong dependence of sigma on covalent O(2p)-B(nd)
interactions seen in our calculations indicates that 17O NMR spectroscopy,
coupled with first principles calculations, can be an especially useful tool to
study the local structure in complex perovskite alloys.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figures, and 3 Table
Pressure-induced diamond to beta-tin transition in bulk silicon: a near-exact quantum Monte Carlo study
The pressure-induced structural phase transition from diamond to beta-tin in
silicon is an excellent test for theoretical total energy methods. The
transition pressure provides a sensitive measure of small relative energy
changes between the two phases (one a semiconductor and the other a semimetal).
Experimentally, the transition pressure is well characterized.
Density-functional results have been unsatisfactory. Even the generally much
more accurate diffusion Monte Carlo method has shown a noticeable fixed-node
error. We use the recently developed phaseless auxiliary-field quantum Monte
Carlo (AFQMC) method to calculate the relative energy differences in the two
phases. In this method, all but the error due to the phaseless constraint can
be controlled systematically and driven to zero. In both structural phases we
were able to benchmark the error of the phaseless constraint by carrying out
exact unconstrained AFQMC calculations for small supercells. Comparison between
the two shows that the systematic error in the absolute total energies due to
the phaseless constraint is well within 0.5 mHa/atom. Consistent with these
internal benchmarks, the transition pressure obtained by the phaseless AFQMC
from large supercells is in very good agreement with experiment.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figure
Microscopic calculation of the phonon dynamics of SrRuO compared with LaCuO
The phonon dynamics of the low-temperature superconductor SrRuO
is calculated quantitatively in linear response theory and compared with the
structurally isomorphic high-temperature superconductor LaCuO. Our
calculation corrects for a typical deficit of LDA-based calculations which
always predict a too large electronic -dispersion insufficient to
describe the c-axis response in the real materials. With a more realistic
computation of the electronic band structure the frequency and wavevector
dependent irreducible polarization part of the density response function is
determined and used for adiabatic and nonadiabatic phonon calculations. Our
analysis for SrRuO reveals important differences from the lattice
dynamics of - and -doped cuprates. Consistent with experimental evidence
from inelastic neutron scattering the anomalous doping related softening of the
strongly coupling high-frequency oxygen bond-stretching modes (OBSM) which is
generic for the cuprate superconductors is largely suppressed or completely
absent, respectively, depending on the actual value of the on-site Coulomb
repulsion of the Ru4d orbitals. Also the presence of a characteristic
-mode with a very steep dispersion coupling strongly with the
electrons is missing in SrRuO. Moreover, we evaluate the
possibility of a phonon-plasmon scenario for SrRuO which has been
shown recently to be realistic for LaCuO. In contrast to
LaCuO in SrRuO the very low lying plasmons are
overdamped along the c-axis.Comment: 30 pages, 16 figures, 4 tables, 33 reference
Computational neurorehabilitation: modeling plasticity and learning to predict recovery
Despite progress in using computational approaches to inform medicine and neuroscience in the last 30 years, there have been few attempts to model the mechanisms underlying sensorimotor rehabilitation. We argue that a fundamental understanding of neurologic recovery, and as a result accurate predictions at the individual level, will be facilitated by developing computational models of the salient neural processes, including plasticity and learning systems of the brain, and integrating them into a context specific to rehabilitation. Here, we therefore discuss Computational Neurorehabilitation, a newly emerging field aimed at modeling plasticity and motor learning to understand and improve movement recovery of individuals with neurologic impairment. We first explain how the emergence of robotics and wearable sensors for rehabilitation is providing data that make development and testing of such models increasingly feasible. We then review key aspects of plasticity and motor learning that such models will incorporate. We proceed by discussing how computational neurorehabilitation models relate to the current benchmark in rehabilitation modeling – regression-based, prognostic modeling. We then critically discuss the first computational neurorehabilitation models, which have primarily focused on modeling rehabilitation of the upper extremity after stroke, and show how even simple models have produced novel ideas for future investigation. Finally, we conclude with key directions for future research, anticipating that soon we will see the emergence of mechanistic models of motor recovery that are informed by clinical imaging results and driven by the actual movement content of rehabilitation therapy as well as wearable sensor-based records of daily activity
Kinetic Monte Carlo Simulations of Crystal Growth in Ferroelectric Alloys
The growth rates and chemical ordering of ferroelectric alloys are studied
with kinetic Monte Carlo (KMC) simulations using an electrostatic model with
long-range Coulomb interactions, as a function of temperature, chemical
composition, and substrate orientation. Crystal growth is characterized by
thermodynamic processes involving adsorption and evaporation, with
solid-on-solid restrictions and excluding diffusion. A KMC algorithm is
formulated to simulate this model efficiently in the presence of long-range
interactions. Simulations were carried out on Ba(Mg_{1/3}Nb_{2/3})O_3 (BMN)
type materials. Compared to the simple rocksalt ordered structures, ordered BMN
grows only at very low temperatures and only under finely tuned conditions. For
materials with tetravalent compositions, such as (1-x)Ba(Mg_{1/3}Nb_{2/3})O_3 +
xBaZrO_3 (BMN-BZ), the model does not incorporate tetravalent ions at
low-temperature, exhibiting a phase-separated ground state instead. At higher
temperatures, tetravalent ions can be incorporated, but the resulting crystals
show no chemical ordering in the absence of diffusive mechanisms.Comment: 13 pages, 16 postscript figures, submitted to Physics Review B
Journa
Nuclear Many-Body Theory of Electroweak Interactions with Nuclei at Intermediate Energies
The Quasi-Elastic (QE) contribution of the nuclear inclusive electron model
developed in reference \cite{GNO97} is extended to the study of electroweak
Charged Current (CC) induced nuclear reactions at intermediate energies of
interest for future neutrino oscillation experiments. Long range nuclear (RPA)
correlations, Final State Interaction (FSI) and Coulomb corrections are
included within the model. RPA correlations are shown to play a crucial role in
the whole range of neutrino energies, up to 500 MeV, studied in this work.
Predictions for inclusive muon capture for different nuclei through the
Periodic Table and for the reactions C and C
near threshold are also given.Comment: Talk given by J. Nieves at NUINT04, Gran Sasso, March 200
- …