The Electronic, Structural, and Optical Properties of Canb2o6 Compound: Theoretical Study

Abstract

Based on the density functional theory (DFT) as incorporated in the Wien2k package, the lattice parameters and atomic position of calcium niobate (CaNb2O6) were optimized. Furthermore, the electronic, optical, and structural properties of the relaxed compound were calculated. Relaxed calcium niobate presents a direct band gap with 3.5 eV, which makes it a good candidate for photovoltaic applications. The DFT calculation reveals that the O atoms make the major contributions in the valence band, while Nb and Ca atoms are the dominant contributors in lower and upper portions of the conduction band, respectively. Moreover, the optical properties of compounds such as refractivity, dielectric constant, reflectivity, etc. are calculated and discussed in detail.