Equilibrium spherically curved two-dimensional Lennard-Jones systems

To learn about basic aspects of nano-scale spherical molecular shells
during their formation, spherically curved two-dimensional N-particle
Lennard-Jones systems are simulated, studying curvature evolution paths
at zero-temperature. For many N-values (N < 800) equilibrium configu-
rations are traced as a function of the curvature radius R. Sharp jumps
for tiny changes in R between trajectories with major differences in topo-
logical structure correspond to avalanche-like transitions. For a typical
case, N = 25, equilibrium configurations fall on smooth trajectories in
state space which can be traced in the E ¿ R plane. The trajectories
show-up with local energy minima, from which growth in N at steady
curvature can develop.