Ferramenta computacional para a definição e geração de estruturas cristalinas

Abstract

The evolution of computers, more specifically regarding the increased storage and data processing capacity, allowed the construction of computational tools for the simulation of physical and chemical phenomena. Thus, practical experiments are being replaced, in some cases, by computational experiments that simulate the behavior of many elements that compose the original one. In this context, we can highlight the models used to simulate phenomena at the atomic scale. The construction of these simulators requires, by developers, the study and definition of accurate and reliable models. This complexity is often reflected in the construction of complex simulators, which simulate a limited group of structures. Such structures are sometimes expressed in a fixed manner using a limited set of geometric shapes. This work proposes a computational tool that aims to generate a set crystal structures. Crystal structures are characterized by a set of atoms arranged in a regular way. The proposed tool consists of a) a programming language, which is used to describe the structures using for this purpose characteristic functions and CSG (Construtive Solid Geometry) operators, and b) a compiler/interpreter that examines the source code written in the proposed language, and generates the objects accordingly. This tool enables the generation of an unrestricted number of structures. Its applicability is demonstrated through the incorporation of a structure, generated from the source code, to the Monte Carlo Spins Engine, a spin simulator developed by the Group of Computer Graphics of the Federal University of Juiz de Fora.