Francesco Mauri

Bio: Francesco Mauri is an academic researcher from Sapienza University of Rome. The author has contributed to research in topics: Graphene & Phonon. The author has an hindex of 85, co-authored 352 publications receiving 69332 citations. Previous affiliations of Francesco Mauri include University of Texas at Arlington & University of California, Berkeley.

van der Waals forces stabilize low-energy polymorphism in B 2 O 3 : Implications for the crystallization anomaly

Abstract: The cohesive energies and structural properties of recently predicted, and never synthesized, ${\mathrm{B}}_{2}{\mathrm{O}}_{3}$ polymorphs are investigated from first principles using density functional theory and high-accuracy many-body methods, namely, the random phase approximation and quantum Monte Carlo. We demonstrate that the van der Waals forces play a key role in making the experimentally known polymorph (${\mathrm{B}}_{2}{\mathrm{O}}_{3}\text{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{I}$) the lowest in energy, with many competing metastable structures lying only a few kcal/mol above. Remarkably, all metastable crystals are comparable in energy and density to the glass, while having anisotropic and mechanically soft structures. Furthermore, the best metastable polymorph according to our stability criteria has a structural motif found in both the glass and a recently synthesized borosulfate compound. Our findings provide a framework for understanding the ${\mathrm{B}}_{2}{\mathrm{O}}_{3}$ anomalous behavior, namely, its propensity to vitrify in a glassy structure drastically different from the known crystal.

Ga self‐interstitials in GaN investigated by ab‐initio calculations of the electronic g ‐tensor

Abstract: In GaN, an exceptionally important role is played by Ga-interstitials being mobile at room temperature. Despite rather large formation energy, they have been observed in irradiated wurtzite-GaN: at least two similar, but clearly distict ODEPR-signals L5 and L6/L6* have been identified (via exceptionally large, nearly isotropic hyperfine splittings of about 4 GHz) as interstitial in two diffent lattice configurations. However, judging from experimental data and total energy calculations alone, the exact microscopic configuration remains unclear. In this theoretical work, the situation is elucidated by ab-initio calculating the complete set of EPR parameters, hyperfine splittings as well as g -tensors, for the stable structural configurations of the Ga-interstitial using a gauge-including projector augmented plane wave (GI-PAW) approach. (© 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Theoretical investigation of moganite

Abstract: The structure and properties of two different modifications of moganite have been studied using density functional theory, and the results have been compared to quartz. It is shown that the enthalpy difference between quartz and moganite, whose structure can be understood as Brazil twinning of quartz on a unit cell length scale, is negligible. This explains the significant amount of moganite in fine-grained quartz samples, as well as the frequent occurrence of Brazilian twinning in quartz. The compression mechanism of moganite has been elucidated, and it is argued that moganite is significantly more compressible than quartz. Observed and calculated NMR spectra are compared, and it is found that the bonding in quartz and moganite is very similar, consistent with the results of a Mulliken population analysis. The elastic stiffness coefficients of moganite have been predicted, and it is shown that formal-charge shell model interatomic potentials appear to be more transferable from quartz to moganite than partial-charge rigid ion equivalents.

Phonon dispersion and low energy anomaly in CaC$_6$.

Abstract: We report measurements of phonon dispersion in CaC$_6$ using inelastic X-ray and neutron scattering. We find good overall agreement, particularly in the 50 meV energy region, between experimental data and first-principles density-functional-theory calculations. However, on the longitudinal dispersion along the $(1 1 1)$ axis of the rhombohedral representation, we find an unexpected anti-crossing with an additional longitudinal mode, at about 11 meV. At a comparable energy, we observe also unexpected intensity on the in-plane direction. These results resolve the previous incorrect assignment of a longitudinal phonon mode to a transverse mode in the same energy range. By calculating the electron susceptibility from first principles we show that this longitudinal excitation is unlikely to be due to a plasmon and consequently can probably be due to defects or vacancies present in the sample.

Universal increase in the superconducting critical temperature of two-dimensional semiconductors at low doping by the electron-electron interaction.

Abstract: In two-dimensional multivalley semiconductors, at low doping, even a moderate electron-electron interaction enhances the response to any perturbation inducing a valley polarization. If the valley polarization is due to the electron-phonon coupling, the electron-electron interaction results in an enhancement of the superconducting critical temperature. By performing first-principles calculations beyond density functional theory, we prove that this effect accounts for the unconventional doping dependence of the superconducting transition temperature (${T}_{c}$) and of the magnetic susceptibility measured in ${\mathrm{Li}}_{x}\mathrm{ZrNCI}$. Finally, we discuss what are the conditions for a maximal ${T}_{c}$ enhancement in weakly doped two-dimensional semiconductors.

The rise of graphene

Abstract: Graphene is a rapidly rising star on the horizon of materials science and condensed-matter physics. This strictly two-dimensional material exhibits exceptionally high crystal and electronic quality, and, despite its short history, has already revealed a cornucopia of new physics and potential applications, which are briefly discussed here. Whereas one can be certain of the realness of applications only when commercial products appear, graphene no longer requires any further proof of its importance in terms of fundamental physics. Owing to its unusual electronic spectrum, graphene has led to the emergence of a new paradigm of 'relativistic' condensed-matter physics, where quantum relativistic phenomena, some of which are unobservable in high-energy physics, can now be mimicked and tested in table-top experiments. More generally, graphene represents a conceptually new class of materials that are only one atom thick, and, on this basis, offers new inroads into low-dimensional physics that has never ceased to surprise and continues to provide a fertile ground for applications.

I and i

Abstract: There is, I think, something ethereal about i —the square root of minus one. I remember first hearing about it at school. It seemed an odd beast at that time—an intruder hovering on the edge of reality. Usually familiarity dulls this sense of the bizarre, but in the case of i it was the reverse: over the years the sense of its surreal nature intensified. It seemed that it was impossible to write mathematics that described the real world in …

Fast parallel algorithms for short-range molecular dynamics

Abstract: Three parallel algorithms for classical molecular dynamics are presented. The first assigns each processor a fixed subset of atoms; the second assigns each a fixed subset of inter-atomic forces to compute; the third assigns each a fixed spatial region. The algorithms are suitable for molecular dynamics models which can be difficult to parallelize efficiently—those with short-range forces where the neighbors of each atom change rapidly. They can be implemented on any distributed-memory parallel machine which allows for message-passing of data between independently executing processors. The algorithms are tested on a standard Lennard-Jones benchmark problem for system sizes ranging from 500 to 100,000,000 atoms on several parallel supercomputers--the nCUBE 2, Intel iPSC/860 and Paragon, and Cray T3D. Comparing the results to the fastest reported vectorized Cray Y-MP and C90 algorithm shows that the current generation of parallel machines is competitive with conventional vector supercomputers even for small problems. For large problems, the spatial algorithm achieves parallel efficiencies of 90% and a 1840-node Intel Paragon performs up to 165 faster than a single Cray C9O processor. Trade-offs between the three algorithms and guidelines for adapting them to more complex molecular dynamics simulations are also discussed.

The electronic properties of graphene

Abstract: This article reviews the basic theoretical aspects of graphene, a one-atom-thick allotrope of carbon, with unusual two-dimensional Dirac-like electronic excitations. The Dirac electrons can be controlled by application of external electric and magnetic fields, or by altering sample geometry and/or topology. The Dirac electrons behave in unusual ways in tunneling, confinement, and the integer quantum Hall effect. The electronic properties of graphene stacks are discussed and vary with stacking order and number of layers. Edge (surface) states in graphene depend on the edge termination (zigzag or armchair) and affect the physical properties of nanoribbons. Different types of disorder modify the Dirac equation leading to unusual spectroscopic and transport properties. The effects of electron-electron and electron-phonon interactions in single layer and multilayer graphene are also presented.