Active learning potentials for first-principles phase diagrams using replica-exchange nested sampling

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Authors: Nico Unglert, Michael Ketter, Georg K. H. Madsen
Cited by: 0
References: 52

Abstract

Accurate prediction of materials phase diagrams from first principles remains a central challenge in computational materials science. Machine-learning interatomic potentials can provide near-DFT accuracy at a fraction of the cost, but their reliability crucially depends on the availability of representative training data that span all relevant regions of the potential-energy surface. Here, we present a fully automated active-learning (AL) strategy based on replica-exchange nested sampling (RENS) for the generation of training data and the computation of complete pressure-temperature phase diagrams. In our framework, RENS acts as both the exploration engine and the acquisition mechanism: its intrinsic diversity and likelihood-constrained sampling ensure that the configurations selected for DFT labeling are both informative and thermodynamically representative. We apply the approach to silicon, germanium, and titanium using potentials trained at the r2SCAN level of theory. For all systems, the AL process converges within ~ 10-15 iterations, yielding transferable potentials that reproduce known phase transitions and thermodynamic trends. These results demonstrate that RENS-based AL provides a general and autonomous route to constructing machine-learning interatomic potentials and predicting first-principles phase diagrams across broad thermodynamic conditions.

Fields of Study & Subjects

Machine Learning in Materials Science Advanced Electron Microscopy Techniques and Applications Model Reduction and Neural Networks

Publication details

Journal / source
npj Computational Materials
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Volume
12
Issue
1
Pages
107–107
Publication date
5 February 2026
Language
EN