Calculation of the structure factor of liquid metals

Abstract

Applying the solution of the Percus-Yevick equation to a one component system and using a screened pseudopotential, a model is developed for calculating the structure factor of liquid metals at different temperatures and densities. The model was tested using both simple and non-simple liquid metals. The results obtained were in very good agreement with experimental values for all the metals used to test the model. The model can reproduce the peak positions in the structure factor of liquid metals within the limit of experimental errors. Also the study revealed that the peak positions in the structure factor of liquid metals occur when the screened potential is a minimum. Also, increase in temperature increases the magnitude of the structure factor but does not affect the peak positions. The model can be use to calculate the structure factor of liquid metals at different temperatures and densities.

Keywords:One component, structure, factor, screened potential

Nigerian Journal of Physics Vol. 18 (1) 2006: pp. 25-32