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Marqueño T, Kuzovnikov MA, Osmond I, Dalladay-Simpson P, Hermann A, Howie RT, Peña-Alvarez M. High pressure study of sodium trihydride. Front Chem 2024; 11:1306495. [PMID: 38264124 PMCID: PMC10803492 DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2023.1306495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2023] [Accepted: 12/19/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2024] Open
Abstract
The reactivity between NaH and H2 has been investigated through a series of high-temperature experiments up to pressures of 78 GPa in diamond anvil cells combined with first principles calculations. Powder X-ray diffraction measurements show that heating NaH in an excess of H2 to temperatures around 2000 K above 27 GPa yields sodium trihydride (NaH3), which adopts an orthorhombic structure (space group Cmcm). Raman spectroscopy measurements indicate that NaH3 hosts quasi-molecular hydrogen (H 2 δ - ) within a NaH lattice, with the H 2 δ - stretching mode downshifted compared to pure H2 (Δν ∼-120 cm-1 at 50 GPa). NaH3 is stable under room temperature compression to at least 78 GPa, and exhibits remarkable P-T stability, decomposing at pressures below 18 GPa. Contrary to previous experimental and theoretical studies, heating NaH (or NaH3) in excess H2 between 27 and 75 GPa does not promote further hydrogenation to form sodium polyhydrides other than NaH3.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomas Marqueño
- Centre for Science at Extreme Conditions (CSEC), The School of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Mikhail A. Kuzovnikov
- Centre for Science at Extreme Conditions (CSEC), The School of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Israel Osmond
- Centre for Science at Extreme Conditions (CSEC), The School of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | | | - Andreas Hermann
- Centre for Science at Extreme Conditions (CSEC), The School of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Ross T. Howie
- Centre for Science at Extreme Conditions (CSEC), The School of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Center for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research, Shanghai, China
| | - Miriam Peña-Alvarez
- Centre for Science at Extreme Conditions (CSEC), The School of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
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2
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Shuttleworth H, Osmond I, Strain C, Binns J, Buhot J, Friedemann S, Howie RT, Gregoryanz E, Peña-Alvarez M. Pressure-Induced Metallization of BaH 2 and the Effect of Hydrogenation. J Phys Chem Lett 2023; 14:11490-11496. [PMID: 38085985 PMCID: PMC10749470 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.3c02704] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2023] [Revised: 11/06/2023] [Accepted: 11/10/2023] [Indexed: 12/22/2023]
Abstract
Using optical spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and electrical transport measurements, we have studied the pressure-induced metallization in BaH2 and Ba8H46. Our combined measurements suggest a structural phase transition from BaH2-II to BaH2-III accompanied by band gap closure and transformation to a metallic state at 57 GPa. The metallization is confirmed by resistance measurements as a function of the pressure and temperature. We also confirm that, with further hydrogenation, BaH2 forms the previously observed Weaire-Phelan Ba8H46, synthesized at 45 GPa and 1200 K. In this compound, metallization pressure is shifted to 85 GPa. Through a comparison of the properties of these two compounds, a question is raised about the importance of the hydrogen content in the electronic properties of hydride systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah
A. Shuttleworth
- Centre
for Science at Extreme Conditions, The University
of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 8AQ, United
Kingdom
| | - Israel Osmond
- Centre
for Science at Extreme Conditions, The University
of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 8AQ, United
Kingdom
| | - Calum Strain
- Centre
for Science at Extreme Conditions, The University
of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 8AQ, United
Kingdom
| | - Jack Binns
- Center
for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research, 1690 Cailun Road, Shanghai 201203, People’s Republic of China
| | - Jonathan Buhot
- H.H.
Wills Physics Laboratory, University of
Bristol, Bristol BS8 1TL, United
Kingdom
| | - Sven Friedemann
- H.H.
Wills Physics Laboratory, University of
Bristol, Bristol BS8 1TL, United
Kingdom
| | - Ross T. Howie
- Centre
for Science at Extreme Conditions, The University
of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 8AQ, United
Kingdom
- Center
for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research, 1690 Cailun Road, Shanghai 201203, People’s Republic of China
| | - Eugene Gregoryanz
- Centre
for Science at Extreme Conditions, The University
of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 8AQ, United
Kingdom
- Center
for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research, 1690 Cailun Road, Shanghai 201203, People’s Republic of China
- Key
Laboratory of Materials Physics, Institute of Solid State Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Hefei, Anhui 230031, People’s Republic of China
| | - Miriam Peña-Alvarez
- Centre
for Science at Extreme Conditions, The University
of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 8AQ, United
Kingdom
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Wang B, Hilleke KP, Hajinazar S, Frapper G, Zurek E. Structurally Constrained Evolutionary Algorithm for the Discovery and Design of Metastable Phases. J Chem Theory Comput 2023; 19:7960-7971. [PMID: 37856841 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.3c00594] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2023]
Abstract
Metastable materials are abundant in nature and technology, showcasing remarkable properties that inspire innovative materials design. However, traditional crystal structure prediction methods, which rely solely on energetic factors to determine a structure's fitness, are not suitable for predicting the vast number of potentially synthesizable phases that represent a local minimum corresponding to a state in thermodynamic equilibrium. Here, we present a new approach for the prediction of metastable phases with specific structural features and interface this method with the XtalOpt evolutionary algorithm. Our method relies on structural features that include the local crystalline order (e.g, the coordination number or chemical environment), and symmetry (e.g, Bravais lattice and space group) to filter the breeding pool of an evolutionary crystal structure search. The effectiveness of this approach is benchmarked on three known metastable systems: XeN8, with a two-dimensional polymeric nitrogen sublattice, brookite TiO2, and a high pressure BaH4 phase, which was recently characterized. Additionally, a newly predicted metastable melaminate salt, P1̅ WC3N6, was found to possess an energy that is lower than that of two phases proposed in a recent computational study. The method presented here could help in identifying the structures of compounds that have already been synthesized, and in developing new synthesis targets with desired properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Busheng Wang
- Department of Chemistry, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York 14260-3000, United States
| | - Katerina P Hilleke
- Department of Chemistry, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York 14260-3000, United States
| | - Samad Hajinazar
- Department of Chemistry, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York 14260-3000, United States
| | - Gilles Frapper
- Applied Quantum Chemistry Group, E4 Team, IC2MP UMR 7285, Université de Poitiers, CNRS, Poitiers 86073, France
| | - Eva Zurek
- Department of Chemistry, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York 14260-3000, United States
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4
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Tao YL, Zeng W, Gao J, Liu ZT, Jiao Z, Liu QJ. Composition and structural characteristics of compressed alkaline earth metal hydrides. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2023; 25:26225-26235. [PMID: 37740369 DOI: 10.1039/d3cp03134a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/24/2023]
Abstract
The metallization of alkaline earth metal hydrides offers a way to achieve near-room temperature superconductivity. In order to explore the metallization mechanism of these hydrides under pressure, a detailed understanding of the property changes of alkaline earth metal hydrides is required. Based on first-principles calculations, we have systematically investigated the dihydrides (XH2, X = Be, Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba) and tetrahydrides (XH4, X = Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba) of alkaline earth metals, respectively. By applying external pressure, we show that the structures of these alkaline earth metal hydrides undergo a series of phase transitions. Moreover, we investigate how the size of the bandgap decreases and eventually closes and reveal the role of electronegativity of metal elements in the critical pressure of hydride metallization. Remarkably, the hydrogen units (H6 or H8) formed in XH4 can accelerate the metallization process. The increase of the energy level difference in hydrogen units promotes the electroacoustic coupling effect, which is conducive to realization of high superconducting transition temperature (Tc). Our theoretical findings identify MgH4-I4/mmm as having potential to be a high-temperature superconductor and provide unusual ideas for the search of unknown high-temperature superconducting materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ya-Le Tao
- Bond and Band Engineering Group, School of Physical Science and Technology, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 610031, People's Republic of China.
| | - Wei Zeng
- Teaching and Research Group of Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu 610075, People's Republic of China
| | - Juan Gao
- Bond and Band Engineering Group, School of Physical Science and Technology, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 610031, People's Republic of China.
| | - Zheng-Tang Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Solidification Processing, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an 710072, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhen Jiao
- Bond and Band Engineering Group, School of Physical Science and Technology, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 610031, People's Republic of China.
| | - Qi-Jun Liu
- Bond and Band Engineering Group, School of Physical Science and Technology, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 610031, People's Republic of China.
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Marqués M, Peña-Alvarez M, Martínez-Canales M, Ackland GJ. H 2 Chemical Bond in a High-Pressure Crystalline Environment. THE JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY. C, NANOMATERIALS AND INTERFACES 2023; 127:15523-15532. [PMID: 37583438 PMCID: PMC10424234 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcc.3c02366] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2023] [Revised: 07/13/2023] [Indexed: 08/17/2023]
Abstract
We show that the hydrogen in metal superhydride compounds can adopt two distinct states-atomic and molecular. At low pressures, the maximum number of atomic hydrogens is typically equal to the valency of the cation; additional hydrogens pair to form molecules with electronic states far below the Fermi energy causing low-symmetry structures with large unit cells. At high pressures, molecules become unstable, and all hydrogens become atomic. This study uses density functional theory, adopting BaH4 as a reference compound, which is compared with other stoichiometries and other cations. Increased temperature and zero-point motion also favor high-symmetry atomic states, and picosecond-timescale breaking and remaking of the bond permutations via intermediate H3- units.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miriam Marqués
- Centre for Science at Extreme Conditions
and School of Physics and Astronomy, University
of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3FD, U.K.
| | - Miriam Peña-Alvarez
- Centre for Science at Extreme Conditions
and School of Physics and Astronomy, University
of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3FD, U.K.
| | - Miguel Martínez-Canales
- Centre for Science at Extreme Conditions
and School of Physics and Astronomy, University
of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3FD, U.K.
| | - Graeme J. Ackland
- Centre for Science at Extreme Conditions
and School of Physics and Astronomy, University
of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3FD, U.K.
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