  The nudged elastic band (NEB) method is a commonly used approach for the
calculation of minimum energy pathways of kinetic processes. However, the final
paths obtained rely heavily on the nature of the initially chosen path. This
often necessitates running multiple calculations with differing starting points
in order to obtain accurate results. Recently, it has been shown that the NEB
algorithm can only conserve or raise the distortion symmetry exhibited by an
initial pathway. Using this knowledge, symmetry-adapted perturbations can be
generated and used as a tool to systematically lower the initial path symmetry,
enabling the exploration of other low-energy pathways that may exist. The group
and representation theory details behind this process are presented and
implemented in a standalone piece of software (DiSPy). The method is then
demonstrated by applying it to the calculation of ferroelectric switching
pathways in LiNbO3. Previously reported pathways are more easily obtained, with
new paths also being found which involve a higher degree of atomic
coordination.
