Molecular dynamics and defects in metals in relation to interatomic force laws

Molecular-dynamics computer simulations have been used intensively over the last two decades in conjunction with interatomic forces to study defects and disorder in condensed matter. In this paper, I discuss different types of molecular-dynamics technique developed recently and examine the usefulness of interatomic potentials for calculating defect properties in metals from the point of view of computer simulation. I illustrate the applications of this technique by some important results obtained in defect properties and in diffusion.