arXiv subjects

Markus Eisenbach

Publications and source records attributed to Markus Eisenbach.

47 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2018

Histogram-Free Multicanonical Monte Carlo Sampling to Calculate the Density of States

We report a new multicanonical Monte Carlo algorithm to obtain the density of states for physical systems with continuous state variables in statistical mechanics. Our algorithm is able to obtain a closed-form expression for the density of states expressed in a chosen basis set, instead of a numerical array of finite resolution as in previous variants of this class of MC methods such as the multicanonical sampling and Wang-Landau sampling. This is enabled by storing the visited states directly and avoiding the explicit collection of a histogram. This practice also has the advantage of avoiding undesirable artificial errors caused by the discretization and binning of continuous state variables. Our results show that this scheme is capable of obtaining converged results with a much reduced number of Monte Carlo steps, leading to a significant speedup over existing algorithms.

physics.comp-ph↗

arXiv2018

Combined Molecular and Spin Dynamics Simulation of BCC Iron with Vacancy Defects

Utilizing an atomistic computational model which handles both translational and spin degrees of freedom, combined molecular and spin dynamics simulations have been performed to investigate the effect of vacancy defects on spin wave excitations in ferromagnetic iron. Fourier transforms of space and time-displaced correlation functions yield the dynamic structure factor, providing characteristic frequencies and lifetimes of the spin wave modes. Comparison of the system with a 5% vacancy concentration with pure lattice data shows a decrease in frequency as well as a decrease in lifetime for all transverse spin wave excitations observed. Additionally, a rugged spin wave line shape for low-q spin waves indicates the presence of multiple localized excitations near defect sites resulting in reduced excitation lifetimes due to increased magnon-magnon scattering. We observe further evidence of increased magnon-magnon scattering as the peaks in the longitudinal spin wave spectrum become less distinct.

physics.comp-ph↗

arXiv2017

A histogram-free multicanonical Monte Carlo algorithm for the basis expansion of density of states

We report a new multicanonical Monte Carlo (MC) algorithm to obtain the density of states (DOS) for physical systems with continuous state variables in statistical mechanics. Our algorithm is able to obtain an analytical form for the DOS expressed in a chosen basis set, instead of a numerical array of finite resolution as in previous variants of this class of MC methods such as the multicanonical (MUCA) sampling and Wang-Landau (WL) sampling. This is enabled by storing the visited states directly in a data set and avoiding the explicit collection of a histogram. This practice also has the advantage of avoiding undesirable artificial errors caused by the discretization and binning of continuous state variables. Our results show that this scheme is capable of obtaining converged results with a much reduced number of Monte Carlo steps, leading to a significant speedup over existing algorithms.

physics.comp-ph↗

arXiv2017

Relativistic full-potential multiple scattering theory: An ab initio method and its applications

The Green function plays an essential role in the Kohn-Korringa-Rostocker (KKR) multiple scattering method. In practice, it is constructed from the regular and irregular solutions of the local Kohn-Sham equation and robust methods exist for spherical potentials. However, when applied to a non-spherical potential, numerical errors from the irregular solutions give rise to pathological behaviors of the charge density at small radius. Here we present a full-potential implementation of the relativistic KKR method to perform \textit{ab initio} self-consistent calculation by directly solving the Dirac differential equations. The pathology around the origin is completely eliminated with the help of an efficient pole-searching technique. This method is utilized to investigate the crystal structures of polonium and their bulk properties. The noble metals are also calculated, both as a test of our method and to study the relativistic effects.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2017

Collective dynamics in atomistic models with coupled translational and spin degrees of freedom

Using an atomistic model that simultaneously treats the dynamics of translational and spin degrees of freedom, we perform combined molecular and spin dynamics simulations to investigate the mutual influence of the phonons and magnons on their respective frequency spectra and lifetimes in ferromagnetic bcc iron. By calculating the Fourier transforms of the space- and time-displaced correlation functions, the characteristic frequencies and the linewidths of the vibrational and magnetic excitation modes were determined. Comparison of the results with that of the stand-alone molecular dynamics and spin dynamics simulations reveals that the dynamic interplay between the phonons and magnons leads to a shift in the respective frequency spectra and a decrease in the lifetimes. Moreover, in the presence of lattice vibrations, additional longitudinal magnetic excitations were observed with the same frequencies as the longitudinal phonons.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2016

Reinventing atomistic magnetic simulations with spin-orbit coupling

We propose a powerful extension to combined molecular and spin dynamics that fully captures the coupling between the atomic and spin subsystems via spin-orbit interactions. Its foundation is the inclusion of the local magnetic anisotropies that arise as a consequence of the lattice symmetry breaking due to phonons or defects. We demonstrate that our extension enables the exchange of angular momentum between the atomic and spin subsystems, which is critical to the challenges arising in the study of fluctuations and non-equilibrium processes in complex, natural, and engineered magnetic materials.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2016

Deciphering chemical order/disorder and material properties at the single-atom level

Correlating 3D arrangements of atoms and defects with material properties and functionality forms the core of several scientific disciplines. Here, we determined the 3D coordinates of 6,569 iron and 16,627 platinum atoms in a model iron-platinum nanoparticle system to correlate 3D atomic arrangements and chemical order/disorder with material properties at the single-atom level. We identified rich structural variety and chemical order/disorder including 3D atomic composition, grain boundaries, anti-phase boundaries, anti-site point defects and swap defects. We show for the first time that experimentally measured 3D atomic coordinates and chemical species with 22 pm precision can be used as direct input for first-principles calculations of material properties such as atomic magnetic moments and local magnetocrystalline anisotropy. This work not only opens the door to determining 3D atomic arrangements and chemical order/disorder of a wide range of nanostructured materials with high precision, but also will transform our understanding of structure-property relationships at the most fundamental level.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2016

A full-potential approach to the relativistic single-site Green's function

One major purpose of studying the single-site scattering problem is to obtain the scattering matrices and differential equation solutions indispensable to multiple scattering theory (MST) calculations. On the other hand, the single-site scattering itself is also appealing because it reveals the physical environment experienced by electrons around the scattering center. In this paper we demonstrate a new formalism to calculate the relativistic full-potential single-site Green's function. We implement this method to calculate the single-site density of states and electron charge densities. The code is rigorously tested and with the help of Krein's theorem, the relativistic effects and full potential effects in group V elements and noble metals are thoroughly investigated.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2015

Density-functional Monte-Carlo simulation of CuZn order-disorder transition

We perform a Wang-Landau Monte Carlo simulation of a Cu0.5Zn0.5 order-disorder transition using 250 atoms and pairwise atom swaps inside a 5 x 5 x 5 BCC supercell. Each time step uses energies calculated from density functional theory (DFT) via the all-electron Korringa-Kohn- Rostoker method and self-consistent potentials. Here we find CuZn undergoes a transition from a disordered A2 to an ordered B2 structure, as observed in experiment. Our calculated transition temperature is near 870 K, comparing favorably to the known experimental peak at 750 K. We also plot the entropy, temperature, specific-heat, and short-range order as a function of internal energy.

cond-mat.stat-mech↗

arXiv2015

Exploring Replica-Exchange Wang-Landau sampling in higher-dimensional parameter space

We considered a higher-dimensional extension for the replica-exchange Wang-Landau algorithm to perform a random walk in the energy and magnetization space of the two-dimensional Ising model. This hybrid scheme combines the advantages of Wang-Landau and Replica-Exchange algorithms, and the one-dimensional version of this approach has been shown to be very efficient and to scale well, up to several thousands of computing cores. This approach allows us to split the parameter space of the system to be simulated into several pieces and still perform a random walk over the entire parameter range, ensuring the ergodicity of the simulation. Previous work, in which a similar scheme of parallel simulation was implemented without using replica exchange and with a different way to combine the result from the pieces, led to discontinuities in the final density of states over the entire range of parameters. From our simulations, it appears that the replica-exchange Wang-Landau algorithm is able to overcome this difficulty, allowing exploration of higher parameter phase space by keeping track of the joint density of states.

physics.comp-ph↗

arXiv2014

Replica-exchange Wang-Landau sampling: Pushing the limits of Monte Carlo simulations in materials sciences

We describe the study of thermodynamics of materials using replica-exchange Wang-Landau (REWL) sampling, a generic framework for massively parallel implementations of the Wang-Landau Monte Carlo method. To evaluate the performance and scalability of the method, we investigate the magnetic phase transition in body-centered cubic (bcc) iron using the classical Heisenberg model parametrized with first principles calculations. We demonstrate that our framework leads to a significant speedup without compromising the accuracy and precision and facilitates the study of much larger systems than is possible with its serial counterpart.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗