arXiv AI

Mechanistic discovery in grain boundary structure and deformation driven by agentic AI

The paper introduces GBClaw, an agentic AI framework that integrates large language models with systematic simulations to study the structure and deformation of general grain boundaries (GBs) in nickel. By applying GBClaw to 14 asymmetric tilt GBs, the authors identified both primary and previously unobserved secondary GB misfit dislocations, revealing their significant impact on shear strength and sliding resistance. The study demonstrates how agentic AI, guided by domain expertise, can bridge high‑throughput screening and deep mechanistic insight at complex material interfaces.

arXiv AI
Oct 21

GBClaw: An agentic AI framework for atomistic grain boundary research and mechanistic discovery

arXiv:2610.28629v1 Announce Type: cross Abstract: Agentic artificial intelligence (AI) systems hold immense potential for automating complex workflows in materials discovery and design, but extending...

By Yazhuo Liu, Kunqing Ding, Xiaoguo Gong, Zifeng Wang, Yichen Yang, Yifeng Che, Wen Chen, Josh Kacher, Olivier Pierron, Shigenobu Ogata, Ting Zhu
arXiv Computer Vision
Oct 2

4DMulti: automated multicomponent identification at complex material interfaces

4DMulti is a physics‑guided learning framework that automates multicomponent identification from large‑scale four‑dimensional scanning transmission electron microscopy data. It leverages a 6‑million‑pattern diffraction database, a retrieval‑conditioned latent diffusion transformer (Sim2real) for realistic pattern generation, and a rotation‑invariant convolutional network for phase classification, achieving 98.82% accuracy on a five‑phase benchmark. The method introduces a diffraction‑inferred structural complexity metric and produces single‑nanometer‑resolution structural maps of complex material interfaces such as superconducting heterostructures, corroded alloys, and degraded solid‑state battery interfaces.

By Haoran Zhang, Zian Mao, Shufen Chu, Xiaoya He, Yuyan Guan, Antong Yang, Mingze Li, Xiaoqin Zeng, Yujun Xie
arXiv Machine Learning
Sep 10

Atomistic Modeling of Chemical Disorder in Materials: Bridging Conventional Methods and AI-Assisted Approaches

The article reviews strategies for modeling chemical disorder in materials, addressing the gap between experimental descriptions of disorder and the detailed configurations required for atomistic simulations and AI workflows. It evaluates traditional approaches such as mean-field theories, cluster expansion, and Monte Carlo, alongside emerging AI-powered methods like universal interatomic potentials and generative models. The review also discusses how AI can accelerate computational schemes and enable disorder-native capabilities, providing a roadmap for integrating disorder into realistic AI-accelerated materials discovery.

By Jiayu Peng, Peichen Zhong
arXiv Machine Learning
Sep 14

Inferring Dislocation Microstructures from X-ray Diffraction via Cross-Modal Contrastive Learning

The paper presents a cross‑modal learning framework that predicts three‑dimensional dislocation density fields directly from X‑ray diffraction data. By pairing simulated dislocation density fields with virtual diffraction patterns and embedding them into a shared 2‑D latent space via contrastive learning, the authors achieve strong alignment between structural and diffraction representations. Experiments show that model performance improves rapidly with dataset size, reaching near‑saturation with about 500 representative observations out of 10,000, and the predicted structures capture the dominant spatial features of the underlying microstructures.

By Benjamin Udofia, Nicolas Bertin, Markus Stricker
arXiv AI
Sep 12

Autonomous Chemical Mechanistic Discovery through Agentic Reasoning and Validation

The paper introduces ARCHE, an autonomous system that combines a general-purpose reasoning model, a domain-specialized computational chemistry model, and a structured tool registry to automate chemical mechanism discovery. ARCHE interprets scientific questions, generates and prioritizes mechanistic hypotheses, orchestrates computational workflows, and refines conclusions in a closed loop. The authors validate the system on three challenging scenarios, including reconstructing stereocontrolling transition states, proposing a radical pathway for an unpublished reaction, and identifying a descriptor governing selectivity in nickel-catalyzed cross‑coupling reactions.

By Dong Li, Sixuan Mi, Zihao Ye, Huan Xiong, Tao XU, Tong Zhu, Aijia Zhang, Junqi Gao, Kaiyan Zhang, Shijie Wang, Bowen Zhou, Yuqiang Li, Biqing Qi
arXiv AI
Oct 27

MatOS: An Agent Operating System for Materials Research

MatOS is an agent operating system designed to streamline materials research by organizing data, knowledge, tools, and workflows into reusable assets. It features a layered scientific asset graph, a stateful adaptive workflow that tracks and resumes tasks, and an evidence-driven asset evolution mechanism that updates assets based on execution records and user feedback. In benchmark tests, MatOS outperforms existing agents and has successfully narrowed millions of candidate structures to a few promising solid-electrolyte and halide variants, demonstrating its effectiveness in long, multistage materials studies.

By Dingyang Lyu, Jing Gao, Zhonghao Chang, Jingjie Huang, Xiangran Cheng, Xin He, Yongda Huang, Zefeng Li, Jiahui Liu, Jian Wen, Feng Yu, Bonan Zhu, Yongheng Li, Hongwei Du, Baole Wei, Ziheng Lu
arXiv Machine Learning
Oct 5

Coupled reaction and diffusion governing interface evolution in solid-state batteries

The study uses large‑scale, quantum‑accurate reactive simulations powered by active learning and deep equivariant neural network potentials to investigate the coupled reactions and diffusion at the interface of a symmetric solid‑state battery cell. Unsupervised clustering of local atomic environments reveals a previously unreported crystalline disordered phase, Li₂S₀.₇₂P₀.₁₄Cl₀.₁₄, in the solid‑electrolyte interphase (SEI), and explains experimental observations of SEI formation and lithium creep mechanisms that drive dendrite initiation. The work demonstrates a parameter‑free digital twin capable of providing atomistic insights into complex heterogeneous processes in solid‑state electrochemistry.

By Jingxuan Ding, Laura Zichi, Matteo Carli, Menghang Wang, Albert Musaelian, Yu Xie, Boris Kozinsky