Structural optimization of silver clusters from Ag141 to Ag310 using a Modified Dynamic Lattice Searching method with Constructed core

Abstract The structures of silver clusters from Ag 141 to Ag 310 are systematically optimized with a modified version of the dynamic lattice searching method with constructed core (DLSc). The interaction between silver atoms is modeled by the Gupta potential. The optimized results indicate that the present method reproduces the known global minima for 22 clusters and improves the known global minima for 19 clusters. For the other clusters under investigation, putative global minima are first reported in this Letter. It is found that the definition of the energy of a single atom is a key factor affecting the efficiency of the dynamic lattice searching method.