Abstract
Overhauser [Phys. Rev. B 35, 411 (1987)] has recently proposed that LiBe is a possible high- superconductor. A crucial question is whether LiBe is metallic. To address this question, we have employed the pseudopotential total-energy method to investigate the properties of LiBe. Two cubic perovskite structures are considered, one with Be at the cube center and Li at the cube corner and the other with their positions reversed. The former is a semiconductor with a calculated band gap of about 0.8 eV while the latter is a metal. The semiconductor structure is found to be more stable by 0.77 eV/atom. The equilibrium lattice constants of the two structures are almost the same, ∼3.18 Å, yielding a density which is about half that of the structure proposed by Overhauser. Possible methods to achieve a metallic phase are explored. In particular, our results indicate that at high pressure ( Mbar) the semiconducting structure metallizes and remains more stable compared to the other structure.
- Received 5 April 1988
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.38.3576
©1988 American Physical Society