  Extending the recently-developed bond-order-length-strength (BOLS)
correlation mechanism [Sun CQ, Prog Solid State Chem 2007, 35, 1-159] to the
pressure domain has led to atomistic insight into the phase stability of
nanostructures under the varied stimuli of pressure and solid size. It turns
out that the competition between the pressure-induced overheating (TC
elevation) and the size-induced undercooling (TC depression) dominates the
measured size trends of the pressure-induced phase transition. Reproduction of
the measured size and pressure dependence of the phase stability for CdSe,
Fe2O3, and SnO2 nanocrystals evidences the validity of the solution derived
from the perspective of atomic cohesive energy and its response to the external
stimulus.
