Transport properties of lithium hydride from quantum molecular dynamics and orbital-free molecular dynamics

D. A. Horner, F. Lambert, J. D. Kress, and L. A. Collins

Phys. Rev. B 80, 024305 – Published 16 July 2009

Abstract

We have performed a systematic study of lithium hydride in the warm-dense-matter regime for a density range from one to four times ambient solid and for temperatures from 2 to 6 eV using both finite-temperature density-functional theory quantum molecular dynamics (QMD) and orbital-free molecular dynamics (OFMD) with a focus on dynamical properties such as diffusion and viscosity. The validity of various mixing rules, especially those utilizing pressure, were checked for composite properties determined from QMD/OFMD simulations of the pure species against calculations on the fully interacting mixture. These rules produce pressures within about 10% of the full-mixture values but mutual-diffusion coefficients as different as 50%. We found very good agreement overall between the QMD, employing a three-electron pseudopotential, and the OFMD in the local-density approximation, especially at the higher temperatures and densities.