Interatomic potential models for natural apatite crystals: incorporating strontium and the lanthanides.

A comprehensive set of interatomic potential parameters for modeling natural apatite crystals is presented. These potentials build on those previously used in research on apatites with new potentials fitted empirically to crystal structures and their properties using the GULP program. We demonstrate that the new potentials produce good models for the different compounds used for fitting, as well as for several natural apatites. Also presented are predicted enthalpies of mixing of strontium and calcium apatites and predicted cation site preferences in strontium calcium fluorapatite. Copyright 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.