Topological descriptors for the electron density of inorganic solids

Fuente: arXiv
Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Szymanski, Nathan J., Smith, Alexander, Daoutidis, Prodromos, Bartel, Christopher J.
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1866915347754385408
author Szymanski, Nathan J.
Smith, Alexander
Daoutidis, Prodromos
Bartel, Christopher J.
author_facet Szymanski, Nathan J.
Smith, Alexander
Daoutidis, Prodromos
Bartel, Christopher J.
contents Descriptors play an important role in data-driven materials design. While most descriptors of crystalline materials emphasize structure and composition, they often neglect the electron density - a complex yet fundamental quantity that governs material properties. Here, we introduce Betti curves as topological descriptors that compress electron densities into compact representations. Derived from persistent homology, Betti curves capture bonding characteristics by encoding components, cycles, and voids across varied electron density thresholds. Machine learning models trained on Betti curves outperform those trained on raw electron densities by an average of 33 percentage points in classifying structure prototypes, predicting thermodynamic stability, and distinguishing metals from non-metals. Shannon entropy calculations reveal that Betti curves retain comparable information content to electron density while requiring two orders of magnitude less data. By combining expressive power with compact representation, Betti curves highlight the potential of topological data analysis to advance materials design.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2502_16379
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Topological descriptors for the electron density of inorganic solids
Szymanski, Nathan J.
Smith, Alexander
Daoutidis, Prodromos
Bartel, Christopher J.
Materials Science
Chemical Physics
Descriptors play an important role in data-driven materials design. While most descriptors of crystalline materials emphasize structure and composition, they often neglect the electron density - a complex yet fundamental quantity that governs material properties. Here, we introduce Betti curves as topological descriptors that compress electron densities into compact representations. Derived from persistent homology, Betti curves capture bonding characteristics by encoding components, cycles, and voids across varied electron density thresholds. Machine learning models trained on Betti curves outperform those trained on raw electron densities by an average of 33 percentage points in classifying structure prototypes, predicting thermodynamic stability, and distinguishing metals from non-metals. Shannon entropy calculations reveal that Betti curves retain comparable information content to electron density while requiring two orders of magnitude less data. By combining expressive power with compact representation, Betti curves highlight the potential of topological data analysis to advance materials design.
title Topological descriptors for the electron density of inorganic solids
topic Materials Science
Chemical Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2502.16379