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Crystal structure prediction from first principles

Nature Materials volume 7, pages 937–946 (2008)Cite this article

Abstract

The prediction of structure at the atomic level is one of the most fundamental challenges in condensed matter science. Here we survey the current status of the field and consider recent developments in methodology, paying particular attention to approaches for surveying energy landscapes. We illustrate the current state of the art in this field with topical applications to inorganic, especially microporous solids, and to molecular crystals; we also look at applications to nanoparticulate structures. Finally, we consider future directions and challenges in the field.

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Figure 1: Microporous structures or networks of corner-sharing tetrahedra.
Figure 2: Hybrid inorganic–organic microporous structure.
Figure 3: Examples of global minimum structures for oxide nanoparticles generated by using global optimization techniques.
Figure 4: Topological procedures can predict new framework structures.
Figure 5: De novo procedures have predicted templates for the synthesis of microporous materials.
Figure 6: Computational methods were successfully used to predict a new polymorph of 5-fluorouracil.
Figure 7: Snapshots from molecular dynamics simulations.
Figure 8: Candidate structures for Na3N.

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Acknowledgements

We thank R. G. Bell, S. Hamad, M. Jansen, S. L. Price, J. C. Schön, A. A. Sokol and J. M. Thomas for discussions, and the EPSRC for financial support via the Portfolio Partnership grant EP/D504872.

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  1. Scott M. Woodley and Richard Catlow are in the Department of Chemistry, University College London, Kathleen Lonsdale Building, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK.,

    Scott M. Woodley & Richard Catlow

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Correspondence to Scott M. Woodley.

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Woodley, S., Catlow, R. Crystal structure prediction from first principles. Nature Mater 7, 937–946 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat2321

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