  We present the results of a large scale molecular dynamics computer
simulation in which we investigated the static and dynamic properties of a
silica melt in the temperature range in which the viscosity of the system
changes from O(10^-2) Poise to O(10^2) Poise. We show that even at temperatures
as high as 4000 K the structure of this system is very similar to the random
tetrahedral network found in silica at lower temperatures. The temperature
dependence of the concentration of the defects in this network shows an
Arrhenius law. From the partial structure factors we calculate the neutron
scattering function and find that it agrees very well with experimental neutron
scattering data. At low temperatures the temperature dependence of the
diffusion constants $D$ shows an Arrhenius law with activation energies which
are in very good agreement with the experimental values. With increasing
temperature we find that this dependence shows a cross-over to one which can be
described well by a power-law, D\propto (T-T_c)^gamma. The critical temperature
T_c is 3330 K and the exponent gamma is close to 2.1. Since we find a similar
cross-over in the viscosity we have evidence that the relaxation dynamics of
the system changes from a flow-like motion of the particles, as described by
the ideal version of mode-coupling theory, to a hopping like motion. We show
that such a change of the transport mechanism is also observed in the product
of the diffusion constant and the life time of a Si-O bond, or the space and
time dependence of the van Hove correlation functions.
