Equation of state and stability of metal crystals at high pressure by DFT calculations

In this work we present \textit{ab initio} equation-of-state calculations for crystals of some metals. Density functional theory at finite temperature (VASP code) is used to obatin the properties of electrons; lattice is simulated in quasi-harmonic approximation at non-zero temperature of electrons. Anharmonic effects are taken into account by the thermal expansion of a crystal. All calculations were performed for aluminum, copper and gold. We compare our results with available shock-wave data in crystal phase, including isentropic expansion. The melting curves are calculated by different criteria; the effect of different temperatures of electrons and ions is taken into account. Also we determine thermodynamic and kinetic boundaries of stability of crystals. Our calculations demonstrate that \textit{ab initio} approaches can be used to theoretically reconstruct thermodynamically complete EOS of metallic crystals.