A first-principles study of the structural, electronic and elastic properties of solid nitromethane under pressure

The structural,electronic and elastic properties of solid nitromethane are investigated under pressure by performing first-principles density functional theory(DFT)calculations within the generalized gradient approximation(GGA)and the local density approximation(LDA).The obtained ground state structure properties are found to be consistent with existing experimental and theoretical results.The pressure-induced variations of structure parameters(a,b,c and V)indicate that the solid nitromethane has an anisotropic compressibility,and the compression along the c direction is more difficult than along a and b directions.From the vibration curves of intermolecular bond length and bond angle,we find that the C—N bond is the most sensitive among these bonds under pressure,suggesting that the C—N bonds may be broken first under external loading.The influence of pressure on the electronic properties of solid NM has been studied,indicating that solid NM is an insulating compound with a large indirect band gap and tends to be a semiconductor with increasing pressure.Finally,we predict the elastic constants and their pressure dependence for the solid NM with the bulk modulus,Young’s modulus,shear modulus and the Poisson’s ratio derived.     

Pressure effects on structural,elastic and electronic properties of BaZnO2: first-principles study

The structural, elastic and electronic properties of BaZnO₂ under pressure are investigated by the plane wave pseudopotential density functional theory (DFT). The calculated lattice parameters and unit cell volume of BaZnO₂ at the ground state are in good agreement with the available experimental data and other theoretical data. The pressure dependences of elastic constants C_ij, bulk modulus B, shear modulus G, B/G, Poisson’ s ratio σ, Debye temperature Θ and aggregate acoustic velocities V_P and V_S are systematically investigated. It is shown that BaZnO₂ maintains ductile properties under the applied pressures. Analysis for the calculated elastic constants has been made to reveal the mechanical stability and mechanical anisotropy of BaZnO₂. At the ground state, the calculated compressional and shear wave velocities are 8.26 km/s and 1.81 km/s, respectively, and the Debye temperature Θ is 240.8 K. The pressure dependences of the density of states and the bonding property of BaZnO₂ are also investigated.     

Stability,structural, elastic and electronic properties of RuN polymorphs from first-principles calculations

First-principles FLAPW–GGA calculations for six possible polymorphs of ruthenium mononitride RuN indicate that the most stable structure is that of zinc blende rather than the rock salt structure recently reported for synthesized RuN samples. The elastic, electronic properties and the features of chemical bonds of zinc-blende RuN polymorph were investigated and discussed in detail.     

Structural stabilities, electronic, elastic and optical properties of SrTe under pressure: A first-principles study

The structural, electronic, elastic and optical properties as well as phase transition under pressure of SrTe have been systematically investigated by first-principles pesudopotential calculations. Five possible phases of SrTe have been considered. Our results show that SrTe undergoes a phase transition from NaCl-type (B1) to CsCl-type (B2) structure at 10.9 GPa with a volume collapse of 9.43%, and no further transition is found. We find that SrTe prefer h-MgO instead of wurtzite (B4) structure for its metastable phase because that the ionic compound prefers a high coordination. The elastic moduli, energy band structures, real and imaginary parts of the dielectric functions have been calculated for all considered phases, and we find that a smaller energy gap yields a larger high-frequency dielectric constant. Our calculated results are discussed and compared with the available experimental and theoretical data.     

Strain-tunable electronic,elastic, and optical properties of CaI2 monolayer: first-principles study

ABSTRACT

The effects of biaxial strain on the electronic structure and the elastic and optical properties of monolayer CaI₂ were studied using first-principles calculations. The two-dimensional (2D) equation of state for monolayer CaI₂ as fit in a relative area of 80–120% is more accurate. The band gap can be tuned under strain and reached a maximum at a tensile strain of 4%. Under compressive strains, the absorption spectrum showed a significant red shift at higher strains. The static reflectance and static refractive index decreased in the strain range of ?10% to 10%.     

Prediction study of the structural,elastic, electronic and optical properties of the antiperovskite BiNBa3

We use an ab initio full-potential linear muffin-tin orbital method within the local density approximation (LDA) to study the structural, elastic, electronic and optical properties of the antiperovskite BiNBa₃. The calculated lattice parameter is in good agreement with previous calculations. The elastic constants and their pressure dependence are calculated; we found a linear dependence of elastic stiffness on the pressure. We estimated the Debye temperature of this compound from the average sound velocity. We also present results of the effective masses for the electrons in the conduction band (CB) and the holes in the valence band (VB). To complete the fundamental characteristics of this compound we have analyzed the optical properties.     

A first-principles study of the structural and elastic properties of orthorhombic and tetragonal Ca3Mn2O7

The structural and elastic properties of multiferroic Ca3Mn2O7 with ferroelectric orthorhombic （O-phase） and paraelectric tetragonal structures （T-phase） have been studied by first-principles calculations within the generalized gradient approximation （GGA） and the GGA plus Hubbard U approaches （GGA ＋ U）. The calculated theoretical structures are in good agreement with the experimental values. The T-phase is found to be antiferromagnetic （AFM） and the AFM O-phase is more stable than the T-phase, which also agree with the experiments. On these bases, the single-crystal elastic constants （Cijs） and elastic properties of polycrystalline aggregates are investigated for the two phases. Our elasticity calculations indicate Ca3Mn2O7 is mechanically stable against volume expansions. The AFM O-phase is found to be a ductile material, while the AFM T-phase shows brittle nature and tends to be elastically isotropic. We also investigate the influence of strong correlation effects on the elastic properties, qualitatively consistent results are obtained in a reasonable range of values of U. Finally, the ionicity is discussed by Bader analysis. Our work provides useful guidance for the experimental elasticity measurements of Ca3Mn2O7, and makes the strain energy calculation in multiferroic Ca3Mn2O7 thin films possible.     

First principles study on the structural, electronic, and elastic properties of Na-As systems

We have performed the first principles calculation by using the plane-wave pseudopotential approach with the generalized gradient approximation for investigating the structural, electronic, and elastic properties Na-As systems (NaAs in NaP, LiAs and AuCu-type structures, NaAs₂ in MgCu₂-type structure, Na₃As in Na₃As, Cu₃P and Li₃Bi-type structures, and Na₅As₄ in A₅B₄-type structure). The lattice parameters, cohesive energy, formation energy, bulk modulus, and the first derivative of bulk modulus (to fit to Murnaghan’s equation of state) of the related structures are calculated. The second-order elastic constants and the other related quantities such as Young’s modulus, shear modulus, Poisson’s ratio, sound velocities, and Debye temperature are also estimated.     

Structural,electronic,elastic,and thermal properties of CaNiH_3 perovskite obtained from first-principles calculations

A theoretical study of the structural, elastic, electronic, mechanical, and thermal properties of the perovskite-type hydride CaNiH_3 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 CaNiH_3 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(B_0') 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.     

Structural,elastic, electronic and optical properties of platinum-based superconductor SrPt3P under pressure: a first-principles study

The structural, elastic, electronic and optical properties of the platinum-based superconductor SrPt₃P under pressure are investigated by the generalized gradient approximation with the Perdew–Burke–Ernzerhof exchange-correlation functional in the framework of density-functional theory. The calculated structural parameters (a, c) and the primitive cell volume V of SrPt₃P at the ground state are in good agreement with the available experimental data and seem to be better than other calculated results. The pressure dependences of the elastic constants \mathop C\nolimits_{ij}, bulk modulus B, shear modulus G, Young’s modulus E and Poisson’s ratio σ of SrPt₃P are also obtained successfully. The computed elastic constants indicate that SrPt₃P is mechanically stable up to 100 GPa. The obtained B/G is 2.56 at the ground state, indicating that SrPt₃P behaves in a ductile manner. The ratio B/G also increases with growing pressures, indicating that the structure becomes more and more ductile. Even though SrPt₃P is an ionic-covalent crystal, the obtained density of states shows that it has metallic characteristic. These conclusions can be further demonstrated by analysing the charge and Mulliken population. In addition, we have investigated the dielectric function and the loss function. It is found that the dielectric function in (E||x, E||y) is isotropic, whereas the directions (E||x, E||z) are anisotropic; the effect of pressure on the loss function of the deep ultraviolet region gradually increases as the pressure increases.     

Structural,electronic and elastic properties of potassium hexatitanate crystal from first-principles calculations

The structural, electronic and elastic properties of potassium hexatitanate (K₂Ti₆O₁₃) whisker were investigated using first-principles calculations. The calculated cell parameters of K₂Ti₆O₁₃ including lattice constants and atomic positions are in good agreement with the experimental data. The obtained formation enthalpy (−61.1535 eV/atom) and cohesive energy (−137.4502 eV/atom) are both negative, showing its high structural stability. Further analysis of the electronic structures shows that the potassium hexatitanate is a wide-band semiconductor. Within K₂Ti₆O₁₃ crystal, the TiO bonding interactions are stronger than that of KO, while no apparent KTi bonding interactions can be observed. The structural stability of K₂Ti₆O₁₃ was closely associated with the covalent bond interactions between Ti (d) and O (p) orbits. Further calculations on elastic properties show that K₂Ti₆O₁₃ is a high stiffness and brittle material with small anisotropy in shear and compression.     

First-principles study of structural stability, electronic and elastic properties of ZrC compounds

We theoretically study the possible pressure-induced structural phase transition, electronic and elastic properties of ZrC by using first-principles calculations based on density functional theory (DFT), in the presence and absence of spin-orbit coupling (SOC). The calculations indicate that there exists a phase transition from the NaCl-type (B1) structure to CsCl-type (B2) structure at the transition pressure of 313.2 GPa (without SOC) and 303.5 GPa (with SOC). The detailed structural changes during the phase transition were analyzed. The band structure shows that B1-ZrC is metallic. A pseudogap appears around the Fermi level of the total density of states (DOS) of the B1 phase of ZrC, which may contribute to its structural stability.     

First-principles study of structural, electronic and elastic properties of single crystal CuZr

Investigations into the structural, electronic and elastic properties of intermetallic CuZr compound had been conducted by the plane-wave pseudopotential method. The calculated lattice constant was consistent well with the experimental value. The absence of band gap and finite value of the density of states (DOS) at the Fermi level reveal the metallic behavior of CuZr crystal, and Zr 4d states give rise to the electrical conductivity. The calculated elastic constants for single crystal CuZr at zero pressure obey the cubic mechanical stability condition, which indicates that the cubic CuZr crystal is mechanical stable at zero pressure. By analyzing the ratio between the bulk and shear moduli, we conclude that CuZr crystal is ductile in nature. The present theoretical investigations might give prediction to polycrystalline CuZr system.     

A first-principles study on the structural and elastic properties and the equation of state of wurtzite-type cadmium selenide under pressure

A first-principles investigation on the crystal structural and elastic properties and the equation of state of wurtzite-type cadmium selenide (w-CdSe) has been conducted using the plane-wave pseudo-potential density functional theory and the quasi-harmonic Debye model. The elastic constants, the aggregate elastic moduli, the elastic anisotropy, and Poisson's ratio under pressure have been investigated. Our calculated equilibrium lattice constants, the elastic constants, and the aggregate elastic moduli at zero pressure are in good agreement with the experimental data and other theoretical results. The variations in the compressional and shear elastic wave velocities with pressure at zero temperature up to pressure 2.7 GPa have been studied; the computed Debye temperature at zero pressure and zero temperature is in reasonable agreement with the result of Bonello et al., In addition, the equation of state of w-CdSe in the pressure range of 0–2.7 GPa and up to a temperature of 900 K has also been obtained.     

First-principles study of the structural, elastic, electronic and optical properties of the monoclinic BiScO3

The structural, elastic, electronic and optical properties of the monoclinic BiScO₃ are investigated in the framework of the density functional theory. The calculated structural parameters are in agreement with the experimental values. Moreover, the structural stability of BiScO₃ system has been confirmed by the calculated elastic constants. The band structure, density of states, charge transfers and bond populations are also given. The results indicate that BiScO₃ has a direct band gap of 3.36 eV between the occupied O 2p states and unoccupied Bi 6p states, and its bonding behavior is a combination of covalent and ionic nature. Finally, the absorption spectrum, refractive index, extinction coefficient, reflectivity, energy-loss function and dielectric function of the monoclinic BiScO₃ are calculated. In addition, the variation of the static dielectric constants ε₁(0) as a function of pressure for BiScO₃ is also discussed.     

First-principles study of structural, elastic, electronic, and optical properties of hexagonal BiAlO3

The structural parameters, elastic, electronic, and optical properties of hexagonal BiAlO₃ were investigated by the density functional theory. The calculated structural parameters are in good agreement with previous calculation and experimental data. The structural stability of BiAlO₃ has been confirmed by calculation of the elastic constants. The energy band structure, density of states, and Mulliken charge populations were obtained. BiAlO₃ presents an indirect band gap of 3.28 eV. Furthermore, the optical properties were calculated and analyzed. It is shown that BiAlO₃ is a promising dielectric material.     

A first-principles study on the structural, lattice dynamical and thermodynamic properties of beryllium chalcogenides

First-principles calculations, which are based on the plane-wave pseudopotential approach to the density functional theory and the density functional perturbation theory within the local density approximation, have been performed to investigate the structural, lattice dynamical and thermodynamic properties of zinc blende (B3) structure beryllium chalcogenides: BeS, BeSe and BeTe. The results of ground-state parameters and phonon dispersion are compared and contrasted with the experimental and theoretical data of previous literature. The phonon frequencies at the zone-center are analyzed. We also used the phonon density of states and quasiharmonic approximation to calculate and predict some thermodynamic properties such as entropy, heat capacity, internal energy and free energy of the B3 phase beryllium chalcogenides.     

The structural stability, elastic constants and electronic structure of Al-Sr intermetallics by first-principles calculations

The lattice constants, enthalpies of formation, elastic constants and electronic structures of Al-Sr intermetallics have been calculated by first-principles method within generalized gradient approximation. The calculated lattice constants and enthalpies of formation are in good agreement with experimental and other theoretical results. The polycrystalline bulk modulus, shear modulus, Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio are also estimated from the calculated single crystalline elastic constants. The total and partial electronic densities of state for the intermetallics were obtained, and the results indicated that Al₂Sr-oI is more stable than Al₂Sr-cF. Finally, longitudinal, transverse and average sound velocities and Debye temperature are estimated.