Theoretical calculation of superconducting transition temperature in vanadium under pressure

We report a calculation of band structure and superconductivity of vanadium under pressure, performed with the Tight Binding Linear Muffin Tin Orbital method. The effect of pressure on the band structure has been obtained. The superconducting transition temperature (T-c) has been calculated using the Allen-Dynes formula. The effect of pressure on the phonon frequency has been taken into account. It is found that T-c increases continuously with pressure up to 130 GPa which is in agreement with experimental observations. The increase in T-c is attributed to the continuous s --> d electron transfer under pressure. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.