First-Principles Methods in the Investigation of the Chemical and Transport Properties of Materials under Extreme Conditions

Earth is a dynamic system. The thermodynamics conditions of Earth vary drastically depending on the depth, ranging from ambient temperature and pressure at the surface to 360 GPa and 6600 K at the core. Consequently, the physical and chemical properties of Earth’s constituents (e.g., silicate and carbonate minerals) are strongly affected by their immediate environment. In the past 30 years, there has been a tremendous amount of progress in both experimental techniques and theoretical modeling methods for material characterization under extreme conditions. These advancements have elevated our understanding of the properties of minerals, which is essential in order to achieve full comprehension of the formation of this planet and the origin of life on it. This article reviews recent computational techniques for predicting the behavior of materials under extreme conditions. This survey is limited to the application of the first-principles molecular dynamics (FPMD) method to the investigation of chemical and thermodynamic transport processes relevant to Earth Science.

Transformation of long-period stacking ordered structures in Mg-Gd-Y-Zn alloys upon synergistic characterization of first-principles calculation and experiment and its effects on mechanical properties

Based on experiments and first-principles calculations,the microstructures and mechanical properties of as-cast and solution treated Mg-10Gd-4Y-xZn-0.6Zr(x=0,1,2,wt.%)alloys are investigated.The transformation process of long-period stacking ordered(LPSO)structure during solidification and heat treatment and its effect on the mechanical properties of experimental alloys are discussed.Results reveal that the stacking faults and 18R LPSO phases appear in the as-cast Mg-10Gd-4Y-1Zn-0.6Zr and Mg-10Gd-4Y-2Zn-0.6Zr alloys,respectively.After solution treatment,the stacking faults and 18R LPSO phase transform into 14H LPSO phase.The Enthalpies of formation and reaction energy of 14H and 18R LPSO are calculated based on first-principles.Results show that the alloying ability of 18R is stronger than that of 14H.The reaction energies show that the 14H LPSO phase is more stable than the 18R LPSO.The elastic properties of the 14H and 18R LPSO phases are also evaluated by first-principles calculations,and the results are in good agreement with the experimental results.The precipitation of LPSO phase improves the tensile strength,yield strength and elongation of the alloy.After solution treatment,the Mg-10Gd-4Y-2Zn-0.6Zr alloy has the best mechanical properties,and its ultimate tensile strength and yield strength are 278.7 MPa and 196.4 MPa,respectively.The elongation of Mg-10Gd-4Y-2Zn-0.6Zr reaches 15.1,which is higher than that of Mg-10Gd-4Y0.6Zr alloy.The improving mechanism of elastic modulus by the LPSO phases and the influence on the alloy mechanical properties are also analyzed.

First-principles study on stability and superconductivity of ternary hydride LaYH_(x)(x=2,3,6 and 8)

Recent studies have shown that the La-and Y-hydrides can exhibit significant superconducting properties under high pressures.In this paper,we investigate the stability,electronic and superconducting properties of LaYH_(x)(x=2,3,6 and 8)under 0-200 GPa.It is found that LaYH_(2) stabilizes in the C2/m phase at ambient pressure,and transforms to the Pmmn phase at 67 GPa.LaYH_(3) stabilizes in the C2/m phase at ambient pressure,and undergoes phase transitions of C2/m→P2_(1)/m→R3m at 12 GPa and 87 GPa,respectively.LaYH_(6) stabilizes in the P4_32_12 phase at ambient pressure,and undergoes phase transitions of P4_(3)2_(1)2→P4/mmm→Cmcm at 28 GPa and 79 GPa,respectively.LaYH_(8) stabilizes in the Imma phase at 60 GPa and transforms to the P4/mmm phase at 117 GPa.Calculations of the electronic band structures show that the P4/mmm-LaYH_(8) and all phases of LaYH_(2) and LaYH_(3) exhibit metallic character.For the metallic phases,we then study their superconducting properties.The calculated superconducting transition temperatures(T_c)are 0.47 K for C2/m-LaYH_(2) at 0 GPa,0 K for C2/m-LaYH_(3) at 0 GPa,and 55.51 K for P4/mmm-LaYH_(8) at 50 GPa.

The growth ofβphase in Mg-Gd-Y-Ni alloy by experimental and first-principles study

The paper reports on the atomic investigation aboutβphase in Mg_(96)Gd_(2)Y_(1)Ni_(1) alloy by using the first-principles study and the high-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscope(HAADF-STEM)corrected by atomic Cs.By using HAADF-STEM,the rectangularβphases were observed in the underage and peak aging stages in Mg_(96)Gd_(2)Y_(1)Ni_(1) alloy.Theβphase could be precipitated from the previously precipitatedβphase,and theβphase grew in steps when it was precipitated.A special transition structure of three atomic layer thicknesses was first observed at the edge of theβphase and the structure of this interface is probably as theβ/Mg_(1) interface for the analysis of thermodynamic characterization and electronic characterization.Theβ'phase and theβ_(H) structure were precipitated only at the edge of the length directions of theβphase.Theβ'phase continues to grow into aβphase directly without the formation ofβ_(1) phase,resulting in an increase in the length of theβphase,which is discovered for the first time.

First-principles study on the diffusion behavior of Cs and I in Cr coating

Cs and I can migrate through fuel-cladding interfaces and accelerate the cladding corrosion process induced by the fuel-cladding chemical interaction.Cr coating has emerged as an important candidate for mitigating this chemical interaction.In this study,first-principles calculations were employed to investigate the diffusion behavior of Cs and I in the Cr bulk and grain boundaries to reveal the microscopic interaction mitigation mechanisms at the fuel-cladding interface.The interaction between these two fission products and the Cr coating were studied systematically,and the Cs and I temperature-dependent diffusion coefficients in Cr were obtained using Bocquet’s oversized solute-atom model and Le Claire’s nine-frequency model,respectively.The results showed that the Cs and I migration barriers were significantly lower than that of Cr,and the Cs and I diffusion coefficients were more than three orders of magnitude larger than the Cr self-diffusion coefficient within the temperature range of Generation-IV fast reactors(below 1000 K),demonstrating the strong penetration ability of Cs and I.Furthermore,Cs and I are more likely to diffuse along the grain boundary because of the generally low migration barriers,indicating that the grain boundary serves as a fast diffusion channel for Cs and I.

First-principles study of the influences of oxygen defects upon the electronic properties of Nb-doped TiO_2 by GGA + U methods

The influence of oxygen defects upon the electronic properties of Nb-doped TiO2 has been studied by using the general gradient approximation （GGA）＋U method. Four independent models （i.e., an undoped anatase cell, an anatase cell with a Nb dopant at Ti site （NbTi）, an anatase cell with a Nb-dopant and an oxygen vacancy （NbTi＋Vo）, and an anatase cell with a Nb-dopant and an interstitial oxygen （NbTi＋Oi）） were considered. The density of states, effective mass, Bader charge, charge density, and electron localization function were calcul^ited. The results show that in the NbTi＋Vo cell both eg and t2g levels of Ti 3d orbits make contributions to the electronic conductivity, and the oxygen vacancies （Vo） collaborate with Nb-dopants to favor the high electrical conductivity by inducing the Nb-dopants to release more excess charges. In NbTi＋Oi, an unoccupied impurity level appears in the band gap, which served as an acceptor level and suppressed the electronic conductivity. The results qualitatively coincide with experimental results and possibly provide insights into the preparation of TCOs with desirable conductivity.

First-Principles Studies of Structural Evolutions in Cathode Materials LiMO_(2)(M=Co,Mn,Ni)

We explore the structural evolutions of stoichiometric LiMO_(2)using the first-principles calculations combined with the cluster expansion method.We automatically obtain the ground state structures of the stoichiometric LiMO_(2)by just considering the cation orderings in the quasi rock-salt structures and the following structural relaxations due to both the atomic size mismatches and the Jahn–Teller distortions.We point out that,on the one hand,the cation orderings are mainly determined by the nearest,the second nearest,and the third nearest cation interactions and can be obtained from the‘phase diagram’we have built using the relative strengths of effective cluster interaction(ECI).On the other hand,the structural relaxations are dominated by the crystal field splitting(CFS)energies,i.e.,structures with larger CFS energies are more stable.By calculating the ECIs and CFS energies for various structures of LiMO_(2),we clearly show how ECI and CFS play roles in determining the structural evolution mechanism of these systems.

Latent Heat of TB18 Titanium Alloy during β to α Phase Transition by DSC and First-Principles Methods

The phase transition of titanium alloys is sensitive to the heat-treatment procedure,accompanied with the latent heat induced by phase transition.However,the latent heat during phase transition of titanium alloy has not been systematically studied,which may result in the gap between designed and actual temperature of the sample and affect the final mechanical properties.In this work,DSC(differential scanning calorimetry)and first-principles simulate methods were used to study theβ→αphase transition process of TB18(Ti–Al-Mo-V-Cr-Nb-Fe system)metastableβtitanium alloy,especially to reveal the influence of the heating rate on latent heat.The ratio of latent heat to endothermic heat of the sample during temperature rising was introduced to interpret the effect of latent heat to actual temperature.The ratio of latent heat to endothermic heat at 1℃/min is about 15 to 20 times higher than that at 10℃/min.The higher ratio indicates that the latent heat of phase transition has a more significant effect on the temperature,which is related to the temperature range of phase transition and theαvolume fraction.Compared with the heating rate of 1℃/min,theβ→αphase transition takes place at higher temperature and the volume fraction ofαis smaller at 10℃/min.Meanwhile,there is a precipitation free zone between grain boundaryαand intragranularαand the distribution ofαlamellae is heterogeneous when the heating rate is 10℃/min.Both of the experimental and theoretical results suggest that the latent heat of phase transition is the main cause of the temperature fluctuation during heat-treatment process.This work has guiding significance for microstructure optimization affected by temperature,to achieve the desired mechanical properties.

First-Principles Investigation of Charge Transfer Mechanism of B-Doped 3C-SiC Semiconductor Material

This study delves into the charge transfer mechanism of boron (B)-doped 3C-SiC through first-principles investigations. We explore the effects of B doping on the electronic properties of 3C-SiC, focusing on a 12.5% impurity concentration. Our comprehensive analysis encompasses structural properties, electronic band structures, and charge density distributions. The optimized lattice constant and band gap energy of 3C-SiC were found to be 4.373 Å and 1.36 eV respectively, which is in agreement with previous research (Bui, 2012;Muchiri et al., 2018). Our results show that B doping narrows the band gap, enhances electrical conductivity, and influences charge transfer interactions. The charge density analysis reveals substantial interactions between B dopants and surrounding carbon atoms. This work not only enhances our understanding of the material’s electronic properties, but also highlights the importance of charge density analysis for characterizing charge transfer mechanisms and their implications in the 3C-SiC semiconductors.

First-Principles Study on Switching Performance and Spin Filtering Efficiency of Dimethyldihydropyrene/Cyclophanediene Single-Molecule Devices with Zigzag Graphene Nanoribbon Electrodes

Moleculardeviceswith highswitchingperformance and/or the perfect spin filtering effect have always been the pursuit with the development of molecular electronics.Hereb,yusingthe 2001.0V nonequilibrium.Green's function method in combination with the density functionaltheory,the switching performance and spin filtering properties of dimethyldihydropyrene(DHP)/cyclophanediene(CPD)photoswitchable molecule connected by carbon atomic chains(CACs)to two zigzag graphene nanoribbon electrodes have been theoretically investigated.The results show that DHP is more conductive than CPD and therefore an evident switching effect is demonstrated,and the switching ratio(RON/OFF)can reach 4.5×103.It is further revealed that the RoON/OF of DHP/CPD closely depends on the length of CACs.More specifically,the RoN/OFF values of DHP/CPD with odd-numbered CACs are larger than those with even-numbered CACs.More interestingly,a high or even perfect spin filtering effect can be obtained in these investigated DHP/CPD single-molecule devices.Our study is helpful for future design of single-molecule switches and spin filters and provides a way to optimize their performance by means of varying the length of bridging CACs.

First-Principles Calculation of the Topological Nodal-Line Semimetal FeGe_(2)

The electronic and topological properties of FeGe2 with a tetragonal crystal structure were investigated via first-principles calculations.The results demonstrate that FeGe2 in this structure exhibits anti-ferromagnetism,with two bands crossing the Fermi level nesting each other at high-symmetry points in the Brillouin zone,forming a nodal ring where the nodes intersect in momentum space.Additionally,it possesses nontrivial topological surface states.Upon inclusion of SOC(spin-orbit coupling),there are no significant changes observed in the band structure,nodal features,or surface states,indicating the persistence of its topological nodal-line characteristics.

First-Principles Study of the New Layered Ternary Metal Telluride,Eu_(2)InTe_(5)

In this study,we performed first-principles calculations using the VASP(Vienna Ab initio Simulation)software package to investigate the crystal structure,electronic structure,and optical properties of a new layered ternary metal chalcogenide,Eu_(2)InTe_(5).Our results show that Eu_(2)InTe_(5) is a non-zero-gap metal with a layered structure characterized by strong intra-layer atomic bonding and weak inter-layer interaction,which suggests its potential application as a nanomaterial.We also studied the optical properties,including the absorption coefficient,imaginary and real parts of the complex dielectric constant,and found that Eu_(2)InTe_(5) exhibits strong photoresponse characteristics at the junction of ultraviolet and visible light as well as blue-green light,with peaks at wavelengths of 389 nm and 477 nm.This suggests that it could be used in the development of UV(ultraviolet)detectors and other optoelectronic devices.Furthermore,due to its strong absorption,low loss,and low reflectivity,Eu_(2)InTe_(5) has the potential to be used as a promising photovoltaic absorption layer in solar cells.

Ideal tensile strength of chromium by first-principles method

The ideal tensile strengths of Cr along [001],[110] and [111] directions were calculated based on the first-principles method.The results show that the ideal tensile strengths are 30.83,37.2 and 35.49 GPa for antiferromagnetic Cr,while they are 33.09,47.15 and38.11 GPa for non-magnetic Cr along [001],[110] and[111] directions,respectively.It is obvious that [001] is the weakest direction.When the loading is applied on the direction [001],the ideal tensile strength is reached before the shear instability for both the anti-ferromagnetic and non-magnetic Cr;thus,Cr fails by cleavage and it is deemed to be intrinsically brittle.Meanwhile,for the antiferromagnetic Cr,the correlation between the magnetic moment and volume was analyzed,and the result shows that the magnetic moment increases with the increase in volume and eventually disappears with the increase in strain.In addition,the density of states in the process of loading was also discussed.

First-principles calculations of electronic and magnetic properties of CeN:The LDA +U method

Electronic and magnetic properties of CeN are investigated using first-principles calculations based on density func- tional theory （DFT） with the LDA ＋ U method. Our results show that CeN is a half-metal. The majority-spin electron band structure has metallic intersections, whereas the minority-spin electron band structure has a semiconducting gap straddling the Fermi level. A small indirect energy gap occurs between X and W. The calculated magnetic moment is 0.99 μb per unit cell.

First-principles Study on Neutral Nitrogen Impurities in Zinc Oxide

The atomic geometries, electronic structures, and formation energies of neutral nitrogen im- purities in ZnO have been investigated by first-principles calculations. The nitrogen impuri- ties are always deep acceptors, thus having no contributions to p-type conductivity. Among all the neutral nitrogen impurities, nitrogen substituting on an oxygen site has the lowest formation energy and the shallowest acceptor level, while nitrogen .substituting on a zinc site has the second-lowest formation energy in oxygen-rich conditions. Nitrogen interstitials are unstable at the tetrahedral site and spontaneously relax into a kick-out configuration. Though nitrogen may occupy the octahedral site, the concentrations will be low for the high formation energy. The charge density distributions in various doping cases are discussed, and self-consistent results are obtained.

Corrosion related properties of iron(100) surface in liquid lead and bismuth environments:A first-principles study

The corrosion of steels in liquid metal lead （Pb） and bismuth （Bi） is a critical challenge in the development of accel-erator driven systems （ADS）. Using a first-principles method with a slab model, we theoretically investigate the interaction between the Pb （Bi） atom and the iron （Fe） （100） surface to assess the fundamental corrosion properties. Our investigation demonstrates that both Pb and Bi atoms favorably adsorb on the （100） surface. Such an adsorption decreases the energy required for the dissociation of an Fe atom from the surface, enhancing the dissolution tendency significantly. The seg- regation of six common alloying elements （Cr, A1, Mn, Ni, Nb, and Si） to the surface and their impacts on the corrosion properties are also considered. The present results reveal that Si seems to have a relatively good performance to stabilize the surface and alleviate the dissolving trend caused by Pb and Bi.

First-principles study of atomic and electronic structures of kaolinite in soft rock

Kaolinite is a kind of clay mineral which often causes large deformations in soft-rock tunnel engineering and thus causes safety issues. To deal with these engineering safety issues, the physical/chemical properties of the kaolinite should be studied from basic viewpoints. By using the density-functional theory, in this paper, the atomic and the electronic structures of the kaolinite are studied within the local-density approximation （LDA）. It is found that the kaolinite has a large indirect band gap with the conduction band minimum （CBM） and the valence band maximum （VBM） being at the F and the B points, respectively. The chemical bonding between the cation and the oxygen anion in kaolinite is mainly ionic, accompanied by a minor covalent component. It is pointed that the VBM and the CBM of kaolinite consist of oxygen 2p and cation s states, respectively. The bond lengths between different cations and anions, as well as of the different OH groups, are also compared.

Near-zero Poisson's ratio and suppressed mechanical anisotropy in strained black phosphorene/SnSe van der Waals heterostructure:a first-principles study

Black phosphorene(BP)and its analogs have attracted intensive attention due to their unique puckered structures,anisotropic characteristics,and negative Poisson’s ratio.The van der Waals(vdW)heterostructures assembly by stacking different materials show novel physical properties,however,the parent materials do not possess.In this work,the first-principles calculations are performed to study the mechanical properties of the vdW heterostructure.Interestingly,a near-zero Poisson’s ratio ν_(zx)is found in BP/SnSe heterostructure.In addition,compared with the parent materials BP and SnSe with strong in-plane anisotropic mechanical properties,the BP/SnSe heterostructure shows strongly suppressed anisotropy.The results show that the vdW heterostructure has quite different mechanical properties compared with the parent materials,and provides new opportunities for the mechanical applications of the heterostructures.

First-principles study of phase stability and electronic properties of RhZr

First-principles calculations were carried out to investigate the structural stabilities and electronic properties of RhZr.The plane wave based pseudopotential method was used,in which both the local density approximation（LDA） and the generalized gradient approximation（GGA） implanted in the CASTEP code were employed.The internal positions of atoms in the unit cell were optimized and the ground state properties such as lattice parameter,density of state,cohesive energies and enthalpies of formation of ortho-RhZr and cubic-RhZr were calculated.The calculation results indicate that ortho-RhZr can form more easily than cubic-RhZr and the ortho-RhZr is more stable than cubic-RhZr.The density of states（DOS） reveals that the strong bonding in the Rh-Zr and Rh-Rh or Zr-Zr interaction chains accounts for the structural stability of ortho-RhZr and the hybridization between Rh-4d states and Zr-4d states is strong.

First-principles study of stacking fault energies in Ni_3Al intermetallic alloys

The first-principles method based on the projector augmented wave method within the generalized gradient approximation was employed to calculate the superlattice intrinsic stacking fault（SISF） and complex stacking fault（CSF） energies of the binary Ni3Al alloys with different Al contents and the ternary Ni3Al intermetallic alloys with addition of alloying elements,such as Pd,Pt,Ti,Mo,Ta,W and Re.The results show that the energies of SISF and CSF increase significantly with increase of Al contents in Ni3Al.Addition of Pd and Pt occupying the Ni sublattices does not change the SISF and CSF energies of Ni3Al markedly in comparison with the Ni-23.75Al alloy.While addition of alloying elements,such as Ti,Mo,Ta,W and Re,occupying the Al sublattices dramatically increases the SISF and CSF energies of Ni3Al.The results suggest that the energies of SISF and CSF are dependent both on the Al contents and on the site occupancy of the ternary alloying element in Ni3Al intermetallic alloys.