First-principles calculation of the lattice compressibility, elastic anisotropy and thermodynamic stability of V2GeC

We investigate the elastic and the thermodynamic properties of nanolaminate V2GeC by using the ab initio pseudopotential total energy method.The axial compressibility shows that the c axis is always stiffer than the a axis.The elastic constant calculations demonstrate that the structural stability is within 0-800 GPa.The calculations of Young’s and shear moduli reveal the softening behaviour at about 300 GPa.The Possion ratio makes a higher ionic or a weaker covalent contribution to intra-atomic bonding and the degree of ionicity increases with pressure.The relationship between brittleness and ductility shows that V2GeC is brittle in ambient conditions and the brittleness decreases and ductility increases with pressure.Moveover,we find that V2GeC is largely isotropic in compression and in shear,and the degree of isotropy decreases with pressure.The Grüneisen parameter,the Debye temperature and the thermal expansion coefficient are also successfully obtained for the first time.     

First-principles studies of the electronic and elastic properties of Ti2GeC

We have performed first-principles studies on electronic structure and elastic properties of Ti₂GeC. The calculated band structure shows that this compound is electrical conductor. From the pressure dependence of elastic constants, we find that Ti₂GeC is most stable in the pressure range from 0 to 100 GPa. The strong Ti 3d, Ge 4p and C 2p hybridization may stabilize the structure of Ti₂GeC. By analyzing the ratio between the bulk and shear moduli, we conclude that Ti₂GeC is brittle in nature, and the brittleness of Ti₂GeC originated from the large value of Ti atom occupying the internal parameter z.     

First-principles study of elastic and electronic properties of layered ternary nitride SrZrN2 under pressure

The structural, elastic, and electronic properties of SrZrN₂ under pressure up to 100?GPa have been carried out with first-principles calculations based on density functional theory. The calculated lattice parameters at 0?GPa and 0?K by using the GGA-PW91-ultrasoft method are in good agreement with the available experimental data and other previous theoretical calculations. The pressure dependence of the elastic constants and the elastic-dependent properties of SrZrN₂, such as bulk modulus B, shear modulus G, Young's modulus E, Debye temperature Θ, shear and longitudinal wave velocity V_S and V_L, are also successfully obtained. It is found that all elastic constants increase monotonically with pressure. When the pressure increases up to 140?GPa, the obtained elastic constants do not satisfy the mechanical stability criteria and a phase transition might has occurred. Moreover, the anisotropy of the directional-dependent Young's modulus and the linear compressibility under different pressures are analysed for the first time. Finally, the pressure dependence of the total and partial densities of states and the bonding property of SrZrN₂ are also investigated.     

Calculated structural, electronic and elastic properties of M2GeC (M=Ti, V, Cr, Zr, Nb, Mo, Hf, Ta and W)

Using ab initio calculations, we have studied the structural, electronic and elastic properties of M₂GeC, with M=Ti, V, Cr, Zr, Nb, Mo, Hf, Ta and W. Geometrical optimizations of the unit cell are in agreement with the available experimental data. The band structures show that all studied materials are electrical conductors. The analysis of the site and momentum projected densities shows that bonding is due to M d-C p and M d-Ge p hybridizations. The elastic constants are calculated using the static finite strain technique. The shear modulus C ₄₄, which is directly related to the hardness, reaches its maximum when the valence electron concentration is in the range 8.41–8.50. We derived the bulk and shear moduli, Young’s moduli and Poisson’s ratio for ideal polycrystalline M₂GeC aggregates. We estimated the Debye temperature of M₂GeC from the average sound velocity. This is the first quantitative theoretical prediction of the elastic constants of Ti₂GeC, V₂GeC, Cr₂GeC, Zr₂GeC, Nb₂GeC, Mo₂GeC, Hf₂GeC, Ta₂GeC and W₂GeC compounds, and it still awaits experimental confirmation.     

Structural stability and mechanical properties of Be3N2 under high pressure

Abstract

A theoretical investigations on the structural stability and mechanical properties of Be₃N₂ crystallising in α and β phases was performed using first-principles calculations based on density functional theory. The obtained ground state structure and mechanical properties are in excellent agreement with the available experimental and theoretical data. A full elastic tensor and crystal anisotropy of Be₃N₂ in two phases are determined in the wide pressure range. Results indicated that the two phases of Be₃N₂ are mechanically stable and strongly pressure dependent in the range of pressure from 0 to 80 GPa. The superior mechanical properties show that the two phases of Be₃N₂ are potential candidate structures to be the hard material. And the α-Be₃N₂ has better mechanical properties than β-Be₃N₂. By the calculated B/G ratio, it is predicted that both phases are intrinsically brittleness and strongly prone to ductility when the pressure is above 65.6 and 68.5 GPa, respectively. Additionally, the pressure-induced elastic anisotropy analysis indicates that the elastically anisotropic of Be₃N₂ in both phases is strengthening with increasing pressure, and strongly dependent on the propagation direction.     

First-principles study of structural,elastic, electronic and thermodynamic properties of topological insulator Bi2Se3 under pressure

The structural, elastic, electronic and thermodynamic properties of the rhombohedral topological insulator Bi₂Se₃ are investigated by the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) with the Wu–Cohen (WC) exchange-correlation functional. The calculated lattice constants agree well with the available experimental and other theoretical data. Our GGA calculations indicate that Bi₂Se₃ is a 3D topological insulator with a band gap of 0.287 eV, which are well consistent with the experimental value of 0.3 eV. The pressure dependence of the elastic constants C_ij, bulk modulus B, shear modulus G, Young’s modulus E, and Poisson’s ratio σ of Bi₂Se₃ are also obtained successfully. The bulk modulus obtained from elastic constants is 53.5 GPa, which agrees well with the experimental value of 53 GPa. We also investigate the shear sound velocity V_S, longitudinal sound velocity V_L, and Debye temperature Θ_E from our elastic constants, as well as the thermodynamic properties from quasi-harmonic Debye model. We obtain that the heat capacity C_v and the thermal expansion coefficient α at 0 GPa and 300 K are 120.78 J mol^?1 K^?1 and 4.70 × 10^?5 K^?1, respectively.     

Electronic and thermodynamic and elastic properties of pyrite RuO2

This paper calculates the elastic,thermodynamic and electronic properties of pyrite (P a3ˉ) RuO2 by the plane-wave pseudopotential density functional theory (DFT) method.The lattice parameters,normalized elastic constants,Cauchy pressure,brittle–ductile relations,heat capacity and Debye temperature are successfully obtained.The Murnaghan equation of state shows that pyrite RuO2 is a potential superhard material.Internal coordinate parameter increases with pressure,which disagrees with experimental data.An analysis based on electronic structure and the pseudogap reveals that the bonding nature in RuO2 is a combination of covalent,ionic and metallic bonding.A study of the elastic properties indicates that the pyrite phase is isotropic under usual conditions.The relationship between brittleness and ductility shows that pyrite RuO2 behaves in a ductile matter at zero pressure and the degree of ductility increases with pressure.     

Mechanical anisotropy and thermoacoustic properties of SnO2 under high pressures: an ab initio approach

The effects of hydrostatic pressures on the electronic, thermoacoustic and elastic anisotropies of SnO₂ in the rutile structure is analyzed up to 18 GPa. It is found that the polycrystalline bulk modulus B increases from 227 to 312 GPa between 0 and 18 GPa while the Young and shear moduli slightly decrease with pressures. The resulting polycrystalline ductility increases with pressures. The speed of the sound for longitudinal waves increases with pressure, while the transverse polarizations and the Debye temperature decrease. Large crystal anisotropy for the shear planes {001} between ? 110? and ? 010? directions under pressures, associated with the phase transition to the Cl₂Ca, is found.     

First-principles calculations on elasticity of under pressure

First-principles calculations of the crystal structure and the elastic properties of OsN₂ have been carried out with the plane-wave pseudopotential density functional theory method. The calculated values are in very good agreement with experimental data as well as with some of the existing model calculations. The dependence of the elastic constants c_ij, the aggregate elastic moduli (B,G,E), Poisson’s ratio, and the elastic anisotropy on pressure has been investigated. Moreover, the variation of the Debye temperature and the compressional and shear elastic wave velocities with pressure P up to 60 GPa at 0 K have been investigated for the first time.     

立方(Ba0.5Sr0.5)TiO3高压诱导带隙变化的第一性原理研究

采用基于密度泛函理论(DFT)的第一性原理计算研究了 (Ba_0.5Sr_0.5)TiO₃ (BST) 晶体在高压下的电子结构及能带变化行为. 研究结果发现,随着压强的增加,BST能带间隙先增加,在压强为55 GPa时达到最大值,然后减小,这些有趣的结果将有助于开发与设计新的BST铁电器件. 进一步地,通过电子态密度和密度分布图的研究分析可知:在低压区域(055 GPa),则是出现的离域现象占主导(电子的离域作用超过键态的作用),从而使带隙减小. 关键词： 钛酸锶钡 第一性原理 高压 能带间隙     

Structural,elastic and mechanical properties of orthorhombic SrHfO3 under pressure from first-principles calculations

Structural, elastic and mechanical properties of orthorhombic SrHfO₃ under pressure have been investigated using the plane-wave ultrasoft pseudopotential technique based on the first-principles density functional theory. The calculated equilibrium lattice parameters and elastic constants of orthorhombic SrHfO₃ at zero pressure are in good agreement with the available experimental and calculational values. The lattice parameters, total enthalpy, elastic constants and mechanical stability of orthorhombic SrHfO₃ as a function of pressure were studied. With the increasing pressure, the lattice parameters and volume of orthorhombic SrHfO₃ decrease whereas the total enthalpy increases. Orthorhombic SrHfO₃ is mechanically stable with low pressure (<52.9 GPa) whereas that is mechanically instable with high pressure (>52.9 GPa). The bulk modulus, shear modulus, Young's modulus and mechanical anisotropy of orthorhombic SrHfO₃ as a function of pressure were analyzed. It is found that orthorhombic SrHfO₃ under pressure has larger bulk modulus, better ductility and less mechanical anisotropy than orthorhombic SrHfO₃ at 0 GPa.     

In situ high-pressure X-ray diffraction experiments and ab initio calculations of Co2P

In situ high-pressure experiments of Co2P are carried out by means of angle dispersive X-ray diffraction with diamond anvil cell technique. No phase transition is observed in the present pressure range up to 15 GPa at room temperature, even at high temperature and 15 GPa. Results of compression for Co2P are well presented by the second-order Birch-Murnaghan equation of state with V0 = 130.99(2)3 (1=0.1 nm) and K0 = 160(3) GPa. Axial compressibilities are described by compressional modulus of the axis: Ka = 123(2) GPa, Kb = 167(8) GPa and Kc = 220(7) GPa. Theoretical calculations further support the experimental results and indicate that C23-type Co2P is stable at high pressure compared with the C22-type phase.     

High-pressure in-situ X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy of Ca2AlFeO5 brownmillerite

The behavior of Ca₂AlFeO₅ brownmillerite was studied by in situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy at 300?K with pressures up to 26.5 and 32.1 GPa, respectively. A reversible structural phase transition was observed. The P–V data were fitted by a third-order Birch–Murnaghan equation of state, and the isothermal bulk modulus was obtained as K₀?=?181.9(76) GPa with K₀′_?=?4.4(17). If K₀′ was fixed to 4, K₀ was obtained as 183.8(20) GPa. Ca₂AlFeO₅ brownmillerite shows an axial elastic anisotropy since the b-axis is more compressible than a- and c-axis. Combined with previous results, the isothermal bulk modulus and axial compressibility of Ca₂AlFeO₅ brownmillerite increase with more Al incorporated in the structure. The Raman spectra of Ca₂AlFeO₅ brownmillerite were analyzed and the pressure coefficients vary from 2.23 to 4.90?cm^?1/GPa. The isothermal mode Grüneisen parameters range from 0.83 to 1.77 and the thermal Grüneisen parameter is determined as 1.08(11).     

Pressure‐induced incompressibility and point singularity of mechanical properties of TaC in NiAs‐type structure

The structural and elastic properties of TaC in NiAs‐type structure under high pressure have been investigated using first principles calculations based on density functional theory. Results indicate that the incompressibility along the c‐axis of TaC exceeds that of diamond under higher pressure. Particularly, an interesting point singularity exists in its mechanical properties as the pressure increases from 20 GPa to 40 GPa. The minimal shear modulus, Young's modulus, Debye temperature, and maximum Poisson ratio of TaC are simultaneously obtained at 28 GPa. The calculations of hardness indicate that the NiAs‐type TaC crystal possesses excellent mechanical properties. (© 2012 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Elastic and electronic properties of a new MAX compound (Cr0.5V0.5)2GeC from first-principles calculations

Based on first-principles calculations, we have investigated the elastic properties and electronic structure of a new MAX compound (Cr_0.5V _0.5)₂GeC. The obtained lattice parameters agree very well with available experimental and theoretical data. Elastic constants are calculated, then the mechanical properties such as compressibility, ductility and stiffness, especially elastic anisotropy of (Cr_0.5V _0.5)₂GeC are discussed in detail. The calculated charge density and density of state exhibit a mixture of covalent and ionic features in (Cr_0.5V _0.5)₂GeC due to the strong hybridization of C 2p with Cr 5d and V 4d states. The coexistence of the stronger and stiffer Cr–C and V–C covalent bonds reveals the underlying mechanism for the higher bulk modulus of (Cr_0.5V _0.5)₂GeC.     

The under-pressure behaviour of mechanical,electronic and optical properties of calcium titanate and its ground state thermoelectric response

Abstract

In this study, the elastic, electronic, optical and thermoelectric properties of CaTiO₃ perovskite oxide have been investigated using first-principles calculations. The generalised gradient approximation (GGA) has been employed for evaluating structural and elastic properties, while the modified Becke Johnson functional is used for studying the optical response of this compound. In addition to ground state physical properties, we also investigate the effects of pressure (0, 30, 60, 90 and 120 GPa) on the electronic structure of CaTiO₃. The application of pressure from 0 to 90 GPa shows that the indirect band gap (Γ-M) of CaTiO₃ increases with increasing pressure and at 120 GPa it spontaneously decreases transforming cubic CaTiO₃ to a direct (Γ-Γ) band gap material. The complex dielectric function and some optical parameters are also investigated under the application of pressures. All the calculated optical properties have been found to exhibit a shift to the higher energies with the increase of applied pressure suggesting potential optoelectronic device applications of CaTiO₃. The thermoelectric properties of CaTiO₃ have been computed at 0 GPa in terms of electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity and Seebeck coefficient.     

Structural and elastic properties of LaTiO3 under pressure

We investigate the structural and elastic properties of LaTiO₃ by the plane-wave pseudopotential density functional theory method. The lattice constants, bulk modulus and its pressure derivative are obtained. These properties in the equilibrium phase are well consistent with the available experimental data. The pressure dependence of the elastic constants, ductility, mechanical stabilities, sound velocity and Debye temperatures are investigated for the first time. From the ratio G/B, we conclude that LaTiO₃ is ductile at 0 GPa and becomes more ductile at high pressure. In addition, the anisotropy factors for every symmetry plane and axis as well as linear bulk modulus at diverse pressures have been obtained.     

Elastic and thermodynamic properties of CaB6 under pressure from first principles

The elastic and thermodynamic properties of CsCl-type structure CaB₆ under high pressure are investigated by first-principles calculations based on plane-wave pseudopotential density functional theory method within the generalized gradient approximation (GGA). The calculated lattice parameters of CaB₆ under zero pressure and zero temperature are in good agreement with the existing experimental data and other theoretical data. The pressure dependences of the elastic constants, bulk modulus B (GPa), and its pressure derivative B′, shear modulus G, Young's modulus E, elastic Debye temperature Θ_B, Zener's anisotropy parameter A, Poisson ratios σ, and Kleinmann parameter ζ are also presented. An analysis for the calculated elastic constants has been made to reveal the mechanical stability of CaB₆ up to 100 GPa. The thermodynamic properties of the CsCl-type structure CaB₆ are predicted using the quasi-harmonic Debye model. The pressure-volume-temperature (P-V-T) relationship, the variations of the heat capacity C_V, Debye temperature Θ_D, and the thermal expansion α with pressure P and temperature T, as well as the Grüneisen parameters γ are obtained systematically in the ranges of 0-100 GPa and 0-2000 K.     

压力及杂质氢对金属锂弹性特性的影响

针对六角密堆金属锂16个原子超晶胞(supercell)、填隙一个氢原子的周期单元，采用基于密度泛函理论的平面波-赝势方法，研究了零温条件下压力及填隙氢掺杂对体系弹性性质的影响.结果表明氢掺杂导致体系的体模量增加.常压下掺杂体系的弹性常数C₁₁，C₃₃，C₆₆和C₁₂高于单质体系，剪切模量C₄₄有所下降，而C₁₃则与单质体系持平.压力作用下C₁₁，C₃₃和C₆₆一直大于单质体系，但C₁₂的值低于单质体系.在2GPa—4GPa压力区间内，弹性常数C₁₃呈反常变化，小于单质体系；在高压区掺杂体系的C₄₄和C₁₃则高于单质体系的相应量值，压力导致掺杂体系和单质体系之间剪切模的偏离加剧.掺杂体系在压力作用下依然保持压缩模的各向同性，具有和单质体系相似的特性. 关键词： 第一性原理 压力效应 弹性常数 金属锂     

Theoretical investigations of structural, elastic and thermodynamic properties for PtN2 under high pressure

We have investigated structural and elastic properties of PtN₂ under high pressures using norm-conserving pseudopotentials within the local density approximation (LDA) in the frame of density-functional theory. Calculated results of PtN₂ are in agreement with experimental and available theoretical values. The a/a₀, V/V₀, ductility/brittleness, elastic constants C_ij, shear modulus C′, bulk modulus B, shear modulus G, Young's modulus E, Poisson's ratio σ and anisotropy factor A as a function of applied pressure are presented. Through the quasi-harmonic Debye model, we also study thermodynamic properties of PtN₂. The thermal expansion versus temperature and pressure, thermodynamic parameters X (X=Debye temperature or specific heat) with varying pressure P, and heat capacity of PtN₂ at various pressures and temperatures are estimated.