Realistic Inversion of Diffraction Data For an Amorphous Solid: The Case of Amorphous Silicon
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
11-22-2016
Department
Physics and Astronomy
School
Mathematics and Natural Sciences
Abstract
We apply a method called "force-enhanced atomic refinement" (FEAR) ot create a computer model of amorphous silicon (a-Si) based upon the highly precise x-ray diffraction experiments of Laaziri et al. The logic underlying our calculation is to estimate the structure of a real sample a-Si using experimental data and chemical information included in a nonbiased way, starting from random coordinates. The model is in close agreement with experiment and also sits at a suitable energy minimum according to density-functional calculations. In agreement with experiments, we find a small concentration of coordination defects that we discuss, including their electronic consequences. The gap states in the FEAR model are delocalized compared to a continuous random network model. The method is more efficient and accurate, in the sense of fitting the diffraction data, than conventional melt-quench methods. We compute the vibrational density of states and the specific heat, and we find that both compare favorably to experiments.
Publication Title
Physical Review B
Volume
94
Recommended Citation
Pandey, A.,
Biswas, P.,
Bhattarai, B.,
Drabold, D.
(2016). Realistic Inversion of Diffraction Data For an Amorphous Solid: The Case of Amorphous Silicon. Physical Review B, 94.
Available at: https://aquila.usm.edu/fac_pubs/17241