title: Calculation of partition functions for the self-assembly of patchy particles.
abstract: Partition functions encode all the thermodynamics of a system, but for most systems of practical importance, they cannot be calculated exactly. In this work we present a new hierarchical method for calculating partition functions to arbitrary precision. We discuss the algorithmic details of our implementation, including elements of shape-matching and entropy calculation for on-lattice and off-lattice systems. We highlight computational trade-offs between speed and accuracy, showing how this varies with temperature, and demonstrate its utility in studying nanoscale self-assembly for a system of model patchy particles.
authors: Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, USA.
authors: Eric
authors: E
authors: Jankowski
authors: Sharon C
authors: SC
authors: Glotzer