arXiv subjects

T. Vegge

Publications and source records attributed to T. Vegge.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

The Interoperability Challenge in DFT Workflows Across Implementations

Interoperability and cross-validation remains a significant challenge in the computational materials discovery community. In this context, we introduce a common input/output standard designed for internal translation by various workflow managers (AiiDA, PerQueue, Pipeline Pilot, and SimStack) to produce results in a unified schema. This standard aims to enable engine-agnostic workflow execution across multiple density functional theory (DFT) codes, including CASTEP, GPAW, Quantum ESPRESSO, and VASP. As a demonstration, we have implemented a workflow to calculate the open-circuit voltage across several battery cathode materials using the proposed universal input/output schema. We analyze and resolve the challenges of reconciling energetics computed by different DFT engines and document the code-specific idiosyncrasies that make straightforward comparisons difficult. Motivated by these challenges, we outline general design principles for robust automated DFT workflows. This work represents a practical step towards more reproducible and interoperable workflows for high-throughput materials screening, while highlighting challenges of aligning electronic properties, especially for non-pristine structures.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv1999

Atomic-scale simulations of nanocrystalline metals

Nanocrystalline metals, i.e. metals in which the grain size is in the nanometer range, have a range of technologically interesting properties including increased hardness and yield strength. We present atomic-scale simulations of the plastic behavior of nanocrystalline copper. The simulations show that the main deformation mode is sliding in the grain boundaries through a large number of uncorrelated events, where a few atoms (or a few tens of atoms) slide with respect to each other. Little dislocation activity is seen in the grain interiors. The localization of the deformation to the grain boundaries leads to a hardening as the grain size is increased (reverse Hall-Petch effect), implying a maximum in hardness for a grain size above the ones studied here. We investigate the effects of varying temperature, strain rate and porosity, and discuss the relation to recent experiments. At increasing temperatures the material becomes softer in both the plastic and elastic regime. Porosity in the samples result in a softening of the material, this may be a significant effect in many experiments.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv1998

Atomic-scale modeling of the deformation of nanocrystalline metals

Nanocrystalline metals, i.e. metals with grain sizes from 5 to 50 nm, display technologically interesting properties, such as dramatically increased hardness, increasing with decreasing grain size. Due to the small grain size, direct atomic-scale simulations of plastic deformation of these materials are possible, as such a polycrystalline system can be modeled with the computational resources available today. We present molecular dynamics simulations of nanocrystalline copper with grain sizes up to 13 nm. Two different deformation mechanisms are active, one is deformation through the motion of dislocations, the other is sliding in the grain boundaries. At the grain sizes studied here the latter dominates, leading to a softening as the grain size is reduced. This implies that there is an ``optimal'' grain size, where the hardness is maximal. Since the grain boundaries participate actively in the deformation, it is interesting to study the effects of introducing impurity atoms in the grain boundaries. We study how silver atoms in the grain boundaries influence the mechanical properties of nanocrystalline copper.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv1998

Simulations of mechanics and structure of nanomaterials --- from nanoscale to coarser scales

We discuss how simulations of mechanical properties of materials require descriptions at many different length scales --- from the nanoscale where an atomic description is appropriate, through a mesoscale where dislocation based descriptions may be useful, to macroscopic length scales. In some materials, such as nanocrystalline metals, the range of length scales is compressed and a polycrystalline material may be simulated at the atomic scale. The first part of the paper describes such simulations of nanocrystalline copper. We observe how the grain boundaries contribute actively to the deformation. At grain sizes below 10-15 nm deformation in the grain boundaries dominate over the traditional dislocation-based deformation mechanisms. This results in a reversal of the normal grain size dependence of the yield stress: we observe that the material becomes softer when the grain size is reduced. The second part of the paper gives an overview over simulation techniques appropriate for problems too large to be treated in atomic-scale simulations, and how they can be combined to describe the interplay between phenomena at different length scales through multiscale modelling.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗