Monte Carlo models were widely used for the study of microstructural and microchemical evolution of materials under irradiation. However, they often link explicitly the relevant activation energies to the energy difference between local equilibrium states. A simple example (di-vacancy migration in iron) was provided in which a rigorous activation energy calculation, by means of both empirical interatomic potentials and density functional theory methods, clearly shows that such a link was not granted, revealing a migration mechanism that a thermodynamics-linked activation energy model cannot predict. Such a mechanism was, however, fully consistent with thermodynamics. This example emphasizes the importance of basing Monte Carlo methods on models where the activation energies were rigorously calculated, rather than deduced from widespread heuristic equations.

Kinetics Versus Thermodynamics in Materials Modelling - the Case of the Di-Vacancy in Iron. F.Djurabekova, L.Malerba, R.C.Pasianot, P.Olsson, K.Nordlund: Philosophical Magazine, 2010, 90[19], 2585-95