Computer simulations of inhomogeneous soft matter systems often require
accurate methods for computing the local pressure. We present a simple
derivation, based on the virial relation, of two equivalent expressions for the
local (atomistic) pressure in a molecular dynamics simulation. One of these
expressions, previously derived by other authors via a different route,
involves summation over interactions between particles within the region of
interest; the other involves summation over interactions across the boundary of
the region of interest. We illustrate our derivation using simulations of a
simple osmotic system; both expressions produce accurate results even when the
region of interest over which the pressure is measured is very small.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figure