Atomic compressibility and reversible insertion of atoms into solids

Abstract

We developed a theoretical model to investigate the compressibility of atoms. Atoms are confined inside a spherical cavity, simulated numerically by a finite repulsive potential barrier. The energy levels and wavefunctions of confined atoms are determined by solving, for different cavity radii, the relativistic Dirac-Fock equations, including formally the repulsive barrier. The changes in the atomic size and in the ground-state energy level allow one to define a positive isotropic pressure exerted on the confined atom. The model is applied to atomic caesium and it is demonstrated quantitatively that the remarkable compressibility of caesium originates from a purely atomic mechanism, namely the pressure-induced collapse of the 5d orbital. We propose that this mechanism can also drive, at an atomic level, a reversible insertion of atoms into solids. Applications to lithium-ion batteries are briefly discussed at the end of this paper.