Effect of temperature on the formation of electronic bound states in an expanded bcc hydrogenoid crystal: A restricted path-integral molecular dynamics simulation

We have used the restricted path-integral molecular dynamics method to study the correlated electronic structure of a half-filled expanded three-dimensional hydrogenoid body-centered cubic lattice at finite temperatures. Starting from a paramagnetic metallic state with electron gas character, we find that bound electrons form upon expansion of the lattice. The bound electrons are spatially localized with their center for the motion of gyration located on ionic positions. The region of coexistence of bound and unbound states in the temperature-density plane is reminiscent of that associated with a first-order transition. At constant temperature, the number of bound electrons increases monotonously with decreasing density. The width of the region of coexistence narrows with increasing temperature.