Viscoelastic model for the dynamic structure factors of binary systems

Is the mechanism of "fast sound" the same in liquids with long-range interactions and disparate mass metallic alloys?

We present ab initio simulations of a large system of 2400 particles of molten NaCl to investigate the behavior of collective mode dispersion beyond the hydrodynamic regime. In particular, we aim to explain the unusually strong increase in the apparent speed of sound with wave number, which significantly exceeds the typical positive sound dispersion of 10%-25% observed in simple liquids. We compare dispersions of "bare" acoustic and optic modes in NaCl with ab initio simulations of other ionic melts such as CuCl and LiBr, metallic liquid alloys such as Pb44Bi56 and Li4Tl, and the regular Lennard-Jones KrAr liquid simulated by classical molecular dynamics. Analytical expressions for the "bare" acoustic and optic branches of collective excitations help us to identify the impact of the high-frequency optic branch on the emergence of "fast sound" in binary melts. Our findings show that in ionic melts, the high-frequency speed of sound is much larger than in the simple Lennard-Jones liquids and metallic melts, leading to an observed strong viscoelastic increase in the apparent speed of sound-more than double its adiabatic value.

Exploring Challenging Properties of Liquid Metallic Systems through Machine Learning: Liquid La and Li4Pb Systems

In this machine learning (ML) study, we delved into the unique properties of liquid lanthanum and the Li4Pb alloy, revealing some unexpected features and also firmly establishing some of the debated characteristics. Leveraging interatomic potentials derived from ab initio calculations, our investigation achieved a level of precision comparable to first-principles methods while at the same time entering the hydrodynamic regime. We compared the structure factors and pair distribution functions to experimental data and unearthed distinctive collective excitations with intriguing features. Liquid lanthanum unveiled two transverse collective excitation branches, each closely tied to specific peaks in the velocity autocorrelation function spectrum. Furthermore, the analysis of the generalized specific heat ratio in the hydrodynamic regime investigated with the ML molecular dynamics simulations uncovered a peculiar behavior, impossible to discern with only ab initio simulations. Liquid Li4Pb, on the other hand, challenged existing claims by showcasing a rich array of branches in its longitudinal dispersion relation, including a high-frequency LiLi mode with a nonhydrodynamic optical character that maintains a finite value as q → 0. Additionally, we conducted an in-depth analysis of various transport coefficients, expanding our understanding of these liquid metallic systems. In summary, our ML approach yielded precise results, offering new and captivating insights into the structural and dynamic aspects of these materials.

Microscopic self-dynamics in liquid Ne-D_{2} mixtures: Quantum features and itinerant oscillators reexamined

In this paper, we report the results of a centroid molecular dynamics (CMD) study of the canonical velocity autocorrelation functions (VACFs) in liquid Ne-D_{2} mixtures at a temperature of T=30K and in the full D_{2}-concentration range (0%≤x_{D_{2}}≤100%). This binary system was selected because of its moderate, although sizable, quantum effects which, as far as its equilibrium properties are concerned, are fully described by the path integral Monte Carlo (PIMC) simulations that have been also implemented. A comprehensive test of the VACF spectral moments carried out using three physical quantities (namely, mean kinetic energy, Einstein frequency, and mean-squared force) obtained from PIMC was performed revealing the potentialities, as well as the limitations, of the CMD approach to the single-particle dynamics in these low-T liquid mixtures. Additional physical information was extracted from the canonical VACFs by fitting their spectra via two distinct methods: the Levesque-Verlet model (LV, very flexible but highly heuristic) and the itinerant oscillator model (IO, based on the physical ground of a single particle rattling inside a short-lived diffusing pseudocage). Both provided good fits of the CMD outputs, with LV being always more adequate than IO in the case of the Ne VACFs, while, as for the D_{2} VACFs, the LV superiority is evident only at high x_{D_{2}} values. However, a peculiar and systematic effect was found after analyzing the IO-fitted parameters: the estimated pseudocage masses turned out to be at least one order of magnitude lower than the corresponding values inferred from the PIMC simulations. This outcome concerns both the Ne and the D_{2} rattling molecule and, as we also discovered, had already been observed (but promptly forgotten) in purely classical simulations of liquid Ar. The possible physical origins of this finding have been finally discussed in some detail, also in connection with the result of the more recent exponential expansion theory (EET), which manages to shed more light on the concept of single particles rattling inside short-lived pseudocages, ultimately demonstrating its untenability.

Ab initio study of longitudinal and transverse dynamics, including fast sound, in molten UO2 and liquid Li-Pb alloys

The disparity between the masses of the two components in a binary liquid system can lead to the appearance of a peculiar phenomenon named "fast sound," which was identified for the first time in Li4Pb several decades ago and later observed in other Li based alloys. However, the exact characteristics and nature of this phenomenon and the reasons behind its appearance have not totally been identified yet. In this work, we analyze the longitudinal and transverse current correlation functions of UO2, Li4Pb, and Li0.17Pb0.83, as obtained from ab initio molecular dynamics simulations. We find that fast sound appears to occur in the two former systems but not in the latter. Additionally, we discuss some of the properties of the liquid mixtures that may be related to the appearance (or absence) of the phenomenon, such as the composition, the polyhedral structure of the melt, and the type of bonding in the system.

Expansion in Lorentzian functions of spectra of quantum autocorrelations

We show that in a quantum mechanical many-body system of Boltzmann particles having space inversion symmetry the spectrum of the autocorrelation function of a local observable can always be given, similarly to the classical case [Phys. Rev. E 85, 022102 (2012)], in terms of a series of Lorentzian functions multiplied by the proper quantum detailed balance factor. This is done by transforming the continued fraction representation, which is derived via recurrent relations and without the use of the generalized Langevin equation hierarchy, into a series expansion. In this way characteristic frequencies can be defined, also in quantum mechanics, which refer to the particular autocorrelation. These are the frequencies of the eigenmodes of the relaxation function connected to the observable. We also show that in practical cases of interest in experimental spectroscopy, and particularly in inelastic neutron and x-ray scattering, the use of a finite number of Lorentzian shapes for an approximate description of the data is related to a reduction of the number of the relevant dynamical variables taken into account, equivalent to the lowering of the dimensionality of the orthogonalized space onto which the dynamic of the system is projected. Examples of application are given for the spectrum of the velocity autocorrelation function of liquid parahydrogen, calculated with a quantum simulation algorithm (path-integral centroid molecular dynamics), and for the molecular center-of mass dynamic structure factor in liquid carbon dioxide as computed by means of classical molecular dynamics simulation.

Collective dynamics in binary liquids: a molecular dynamics study of the composition dependence of the spectra of collective excitations

The spectra of longitudinal and transverse collective excitations in liquid binary metallic Na(c)K(1-c) alloys are studied for pure components and four different concentrations. A theoretical generalized collective modes approach is used to analyze the concentration dependence of the dispersion of acoustic and optic branches in a wide region of wavenumbers. The dispersion of longitudinal collective excitations in binary alloys is estimated from the eight-variable thermo-viscoelastic dynamic model with full account of thermal fluctuations. It is found that the longitudinal and transverse branches show different dependences on concentration in the short-wavelength region. The issue of 'positive dispersion' of acoustic excitations in liquid binary alloys on the boundary of the hydrodynamic regime is discussed. It is shown that the coupling between longitudinal acoustic and optic modes is responsible for an increase of the 'positive dispersion' close to equimolar composition.

Ab initio study of collective excitations in a disparate mass molten salt

Ab initio molecular dynamics simulations and the approach of generalized collective modes are applied for calculations of spectra of longitudinal and transverse collective excitations in molten LiBr. Dispersion and damping of low- and high-frequency branches of collective excitations as well as wave-number dependent relaxing modes were calculated. The main mode contributions to partial, total, and concentration dynamic structure factors were estimated in a wide region of wave numbers. A role of polarization effects is discussed from comparison of mode contributions to concentration dynamic structure factors calculated for molten LiBr from ab initio and classical rigid ion simulations.