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At Left: Two stacked fcc unit cells with the central atom showing the 12 nearest neighbors. In the case of pure Pu, the 12 nearest-neighbor bonds vary widely and can be separated into six pairs. When the fcc lattice is combined with the motif of these bonds, the resulting structure is monoclinic.

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Why Gallium Stabilizes delta Plutonium
EOS & Materials Theory scientist Per Söderlind and H Division Deputy Leader Adam Schwartz in a collaboration with Kevin Moore (LLNL/CMLS) and Prof. David Laughlin (CMU) have used first principles calculations to understand the effect of gallium on the stability of delta plutonium in a recent article in Physical Review Letters. This work has received attention in the media (here and here).

K. T. Moore, P. Söderlind, A. J. Schwartz, and D. E. Laughlin, "Symmetry and Stability of delta Plutonium: The Influence of Electronic Structure," Phys. Rev. Lett. 96, 206402 (2006).

John Moriarty has been named a Fellow of the American Physical Society.

Lin Yang was elected member-at-large of the executive committee of the California section of the American Physical Society.

John Pask was interviewed by IOP as part of their 60 seconds with ... Authors Edition.

Robert Rudd in a collaboration with other scientists from LLNL and Oxford University has used molecular dynamics simulations to understand the time scale for irreversible (plastic) deformation in a shock wave. This work was featured on the cover of Nature Materials. (See also this news release).

Graduate Summer School
EOS & Materials Theory Physicists are participating in the Computational Chemistry and Materials Science Summer Institute. This program offers graduate students the opportunity to work with a host scientist at LLNL, to attend lecture courses given by some of the top computational scientists from LLNL and universities and to participate in a variety of activities as a group. Each student also receives a substantial stipend and funds to cover travel expenses. The deadline for application is in January or February each year, but please consult the web site linked above for the exact date.

This page contains links to recent Science & Technology and other newsworthy articles featuring the EOS & Materials Theory Group.

 

Maintained by Robert E. Rudd -- Last updated on 9 March 2007.

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