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Srikanth Sastry

Publications and source records attributed to Srikanth Sastry.

8 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Tuning of tetrahedrality in a silicon potential yields a series of monatomic (metal-like) glass formers of very high fragility.

We obtain monatomic glass formers in simulations by modifying the tetrahedral character in a silicon potential to explore a triple point zone between potentials favoring diamond (dc) and bcc crystals. dc crystallization is always preceded by a polyamorphic transformation of the liquid, and is frustrated when the Kauzmann temperature of the high temperature liquid intersects the liquid-liquid coexistence line. The glass forming liquids are extraordinarily fragile. Our results suggest that Si and Ge liquids may be vitrified at a pressure close to the diamond-beta-tin-liquid triple point.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2005

Diffusion maximum as a function of size in dense liquids.

We study the diffusion of small guest particles of different sizes in a host fluid at liquid densities using molecular dynamics simulations. We observe an enhancement of the diffusivity of guest particles for a size related to the structure of the void space of the host fluid, analogous to the "levitation effect" observed for guest diffusion in porous solids. Friction and activation energy are found to be minimum for the guest size with maximum self-diffusivity. Wavelength dependent self-diffusivity indicates a monotonic and oscillatory dependence on wave number k for anomalous and linear regimes, respectively. These are associated with single and bi-exponential decay of the incoherent intermediate scattering function.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2004

Metal-to-semimetal transition in supercooled liquid silicon.

Computer simulations, using the Stillinger-Weber potential, have previously been employed to demonstrate a liquid-liquid transition in supercooled silicon near 1060 K. From calculations of electronic structure using an empirical psuedopotential, we show that silicon undergoes an associated metal to semimetal transition with a resistivity jump of roughly 1 order of magnitude. We show that the electronic states near the Fermi energy become localized in the low temperature phase, and that changes in electronic structure between the two phases arise from a change in atomic structure, and not from a change in density.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2003

Liquid-liquid phase transition in supercooled silicon.

Silicon in its liquid and amorphous forms occupies a unique position among amorphous materials. Obviously important in its own right, the amorphous form is structurally close to the group of 4-4, 3-5 and 2-6 amorphous semiconductors that have been found to have interesting pressure-induced semiconductor-to-metal phase transitions. On the other hand, its liquid form has much in common, thermodynamically, with water and other 'tetrahedral network' liquids that show density maxima. Proper study of the 'liquid-amorphous transition', documented for non-crystalline silicon by both experimental and computer simulation studies, may therefore also shed light on phase behaviour in these related materials. Here, we provide detailed and unambiguous simulation evidence that the transition in supercooled liquid silicon, in the Stillinger-Weber potential, is thermodynamically of first order and indeed occurs between two liquid states, as originally predicted by Aptekar. In addition we present evidence to support the relevance of spinodal divergences near such a transition, and the prediction that the transition marks a change in the liquid dynamic character from that of a fragile liquid to that of a strong liquid.

Computer Simulation↗
PubMed2003

Recent results on the connection between thermodynamics and dynamics in supercooled water.

We review recent results on the connection between thermodynamics and dynamics in a model for water. We verify the Adam-Gibbs relation between entropy and dynamic properties using computer simulations, which allow direct access to the relevant properties. We combine experimental measurements of entropy with the Adam-Gibbs hypothesis to predict dynamic properties in deeply supercooled states, which are difficult to access experimentally. We find evidence suggesting that the glass transition temperature of water may be significantly higher than previously reported, but is still consistent with recent measurements. Finally, we discuss the hypothesis that the dynamical behavior of deeply supercooled water undergoes a crossover from 'fragile' to 'strong' behavior.

Cold Temperature↗
PubMed2002

What do we learn from the local geometry of glass-forming liquids?

We examine the local geometry of a simulated glass-forming polymer melt. Using the Voronoi construction, we find that the distributions of Voronoi volume P(v(V)) and asphericity P(a) appear to be universal properties of dense liquids, supporting the use of packing approaches to understand liquid properties. We also calculate the average free volume along a path of constant density and find that extrapolates to zero at the same temperature T0 that the extrapolated relaxation time diverges. We relate to the Debye-Waller factor, which is measurable by neutron scattering.

Journal Article↗