Surface, interface and stacking fault energies of magnesium from first principles calculations

Properties of magnesium have been calculated for bulk, surface and stacking faults, regarded as homogeneous interfaces, using density functional theory within a plane wave pseudopotential technique. Using a supercell approach, stacking fault energies have been determined for intrinsic, extrinsic and twin-like structures for the basal plane together with generalised stacking fault energies on basal, pyramidal and prismatic planes.