In [[computational chemistry]] and [[computational physics]], the '''embedded atom model''', '''embedded-atom method''' or '''EAM''', is an approximation describing the energy between two atoms. The energy is thea function of a sum of functions of the separation between an atom and its neighbors. In the original model, by Murray Daw and Mike Baskes, the latter functions represent the electron density. EAM is related to the second moment approximation to [[tight binding (physics)|tight binding]] theory, also known as the Finnis-Sinclair model. These models are particularly appropriate for metallic systems. Embedded-atom methods are widely used in [[molecular dynamics]] simulations.
