First-principles solution to the problem of Mo lattice stability

The energy differences between the ground state body-centered structure and closed-packed face-centered structure for transition metals in the middle of the series show unusually large disagreements when they are obtained by the thermochemical approach based on the analysis of experimental data or by first-principles electronic structure calculations. Considering a typical example, the lattice stability of Mo, we present a solution to this long-standing problem. We carry out ab initio molecular dynamics simulations for the two phases at high temperature and show that the configurational energy difference approaches the value derived by means of the thermochemical approach. The main contribution to the effect comes from the modification of the canonical band structure due to anharmonic thermal motion at high temperature.