Regularity and locality of point defects in multilattices

Abstract

We formulate a model for a point defect embedded in a homogeneous multilattice crystal with an empirical interatomic potential interaction. Under a natural phonon stability assumption, we quantify the decay of the long-range elastic fields with increasing distance from the defect. These decay estimates are an essential ingredient in quantifying approximation errors in coarse-grained models and in the construction of optimal numerical methods for approximating crystalline defects.