Vertex-Linked ZnO2S2 Tetrahedra in the Oxysulfide BaZnOS: a New Coordination Environment for Zinc in a Condensed Solid

Oxychalcogenides: A Promising Class of Materials for Nonlinear Optical Crystals with Mixed-Anion Groups

Infrared nonlinear optical (IR NLO) materials are of great significance in the development of IR laser technology. But rationally designing high-performance IR NLO materials remains a huge challenge due to the conflict between the necessary properties required for NLO materials. Notably, oxychalcogenides with mixed-anion groups have drawn extensive interest as a family of important IR NLO candidates because they integrate the property advantages of oxides and chalcogenides by chemical substitution engineering. In this review, we provide a survey of reported oxychalcogenides and aim to present the development of NLO oxychalcogenides from the perspective of rational design of their structural chemistry. Furthermore, we focus on the relationships between partial substitution and structural symmetry as well as optical properties. These provide some helpful guidance for the further exploration and design of novel oxychalcogenide materials with excellent NLO performance in the future.

Structural Dimension Modulation in the New Oxysulfide System of Ae2Sb2O2S3 (Ae = Ca, Ba)

Inspired by the abundant structural diversity and potential applications of Sb-based oxysulfides, two new compounds with the same stoichiometry, Ae2Sb2O2S3 (Ae = Ca, Ba), were successfully synthesized via solid state...

Metal Oxysulfides: From Bulk Compounds to Nanomaterials

This review summarizes the syntheses and applications of metal oxysulfides. Bulk compounds of rare earth and transition metals are discussed in the section Introduction. After a presentation of their main properties and applications, their structures are presented and their syntheses are discussed. The section Bulk Materials and Their Main Applications is dedicated to the growing field of nanoscaled metal oxysulfides. Synthesis and applications of lanthanide-based nanoparticles are more mature and are discussed first. Then, works on transition-metal based nanoparticles are presented and discussed. Altogether, this review highlights the opportunities offered by metal oxysulfides for application in a range of technological fields, in relation with the most advanced synthetic routes and characterization techniques.

Synthesis, Crystal Structure, and Optical Characterization of the Sulfide Chloride Oxide CsBa6V4S12ClO4 with a Near-Infrared Fluorescence

When CsCl, BaS, BaO, V, and S are reacted in a solid-state reaction under inert conditions, pure powders and single crystals of senary CsBa₆V₄S₁₂ClO₄ can be obtained. Its unique crystal structure has the symmetry R3̅H (no. 148) and unit cell parameters a = 9.0575(2) and c = 28.339(1) Å. The crystal structure contains polar units [VS₃O]^3- and a complex BaS₇ClO₂ coordination. The compound gets its deep-red color from a low-energy charge transfer, which can be explained by an electron transfer from S^2- to V⁵⁺. In the near-infrared range, down-converted fluorescence occurs at 1.06 and 0.90 eV, and both emissions appear <450 ps after excitation at about 1.27 eV.

A Review of Mechanoluminescence in Inorganic Solids: Compounds, Mechanisms, Models and Applications

Mechanoluminescence (ML) is the non-thermal emission of light as a response to mechanical stimuli on a solid material. While this phenomenon has been observed for a long time when breaking certain materials, it is now being extensively explored, especially since the discovery of non-destructive ML upon elastic deformation. A great number of materials have already been identified as mechanoluminescent, but novel ones with colour tunability and improved sensitivity are still urgently needed. The physical origin of the phenomenon, which mainly involves the release of trapped carriers at defects with the help of stress, still remains unclear. This in turn hinders a deeper research, either theoretically or application oriented. In this review paper, we have tabulated the known ML compounds according to their structure prototypes based on the connectivity of anion polyhedra, highlighting structural features, such as framework distortion, layered structure, elastic anisotropy and microstructures, which are very relevant to the ML process. We then review the various proposed mechanisms and corresponding mathematical models. We comment on their contribution to a clearer understanding of the ML phenomenon and on the derived guidelines for improving properties of ML phosphors. Proven and potential applications of ML in various fields, such as stress field sensing, light sources, and sensing electric (magnetic) fields, are summarized. Finally, we point out the challenges and future directions in this active and emerging field of luminescence research.

Canted Antiferromagnetism on Rectangular Layers of Fe2+ in Polymorphic CaFeSeO

From stoichiometric amounts of CaO, Fe, and Se, pure powders and single crystals of quaternary [Formula: see text] can be obtained by solid-state reaction and self-flux growth, respectively. The as-synthesized compound exhibits a polymorphic crystal structure, where the two modifications have different stacking sequences of [Formula: see text] layers. The two polymorphs have similar unit cells but different crystal symmetries (Cmc2₁ and Pnma), of which the former is non-centrosymmetric. Fe is divalent (d⁶) and high-spin, as proven by X-ray spectroscopy, Mössbauer spectroscopy, and powder neutron diffraction data. The latter two, in combination with magnetic susceptibility and specific heat data, reveal a long-range antiferromagnetic spin order (T_N = 160 K) with a minor spin canting. CaFeSeO is an electronic insulator, as confirmed by resistivity measurements and density functional theory calculations. The latter also suggest a relatively small energy difference between the two polymorphs, explaining their intimate intergrowth.

Spin-polarized Second Harmonic Generation from the Antiferromagnetic CaCoSO Single Crystal

The spin-polarized second harmonic generation (SHG) of the recently synthesized CaCoSO single crystal is performed based on the calculated electronic band structure. The calculation reveals that the spin-up (↑) channel of CaCoSO possesses a direct energy gap (Γ^v-Γ^c) of about 2.187 eV, 1.187 eV (K^v-K^c) for the spin-down (↓) channel and an indirect gap (Γ^v-K^c) of about 0.4 eV for the spin-polarized CaCoSO single crystal. The linear optical properties obtained reveal that the recently synthesized crystal exhibits considerable anisotropy with negative uniaxial anisotropy and birefringence favor to enhance the SHG. We have calculated the three non-zero tensor components of the SHG and found the is the dominat component, one with a large SHG of about (d₃₃ = 6.936 pm/V at λ = 1064 nm), the half value of KTiOPO₄ (KTP). As the values of (↑) < (↓) < spin-polarized are related to the values of the energy gap of (↑) 2.187 eV> (↓) 1.187 eV> spin-polarized gap 0.4 eV; therefore, a smaller energy gap gives better SHG performance. Furthermore, the microscopic first hyperpolarizability, β_ijk, is calculated.

Complex Microstructure and Magnetism in Polymorphic CaFeSeO

The structural complexity of the antiferromagnetic oxide selenide CaFeSeO is described. The compound contains puckered FeSeO layers composed of FeSe₂O₂ tetrahedra sharing all their vertexes. Two polymorphs coexist that can be derived from an archetype BaZnSO structure by cooperative tilting of the FeSe₂O₂ tetrahedra. The polymorphs differ in the relative arrangement of the puckered layers of vertex-linked FeSe₂O₂ tetrahedra. In a noncentrosymmetric Cmc2₁ polymorph (a = 3.89684(2) Å, b = 13.22054(8) Å, c = 5.93625(2) Å) the layers are related by the C-centering translation, while in a centrosymmetric Pmcn polymorph, with a similar cell metric (a = 3.89557(6) Å, b = 13.2237(6) Å, c = 5.9363(3) Å), the layers are related by inversion. The compound shows long-range antiferromagnetic order below a Neél temperature of 159(1) K with both polymorphs showing antiferromagnetic coupling via Fe-O-Fe linkages and ferromagnetic coupling via Fe-Se-Fe linkages within the FeSeO layers. The magnetic susceptibility also shows evidence for weak ferromagnetism which is modeled in the refinements of the magnetic structure as arising from an uncompensated spin canting in the noncentrosymmetric polymorph. There is also a spin glass component to the magnetism which likely arises from the disordered regions of the structure evident in the transmission electron microscopy.

Energy harvesting and conversion mechanisms for intrinsic upconverted mechano-persistent luminescence in CaZnOS

Vacancy defects acting as native activators, e.g. V2+ZnO and V2+CaZnOS, function as energy conversion centers to transfer energy into photons.

Synthesis and Characterization of Ba[CoSO]: Magnetic Complexity in the Presence of Chalcogen Ordering

Barium thio-oxocobaltate(II), Ba[CoS2/2 O2/2 ], was synthesized by the reaction of equimolar amounts of BaO, Co, and S in closed silica ampoules. The title compound (Cmcm, a=3.98808(3), b=12.75518(9), c=6.10697(4) Å) is isostructural to Ba[ZnSO]. The use of soft X-ray absorption spectroscopy confirmed that cobalt is in the oxidation state +2 and tetrahedrally coordinated. Its coordination consists of two sulfur and two oxygen atoms in an ordered fashion. High-temperature magnetic susceptibility data indicate strong low-dimensional spin-spin interactions, which are suggested to be closely related to the layer-type crystal structure and perhaps the ordered distribution of sulfur and oxygen. Antiferromagnetic ordering below TN =222 K is observed as an anomaly in the specific heat, coinciding with a significant lowering of the magnetic susceptibility. Density functional theory calculations within a generalized-gradient approximation (GGA)+U approach identify an antiferromagnetic ground state within the square-like two-dimensional layers of Co, and antiferromagnetic correlations for nearest and next nearest neighbors along bonds mediated by oxygen or sulfur. However, this magnetic state is subject to frustration by relatively strong interlayer couplings.

Structure and Physical Properties of the Polar Oxysulfide CaZnOS

The synthesis, structure, and electrical properties of the oxysulfide CaZnOS are reported. The white compound has a band gap of 3.7(1) eV and crystallizes in hexagonal space group P6(3)mc (No. 186) with a = 3.75726(3) A, c = 11.4013(1) A, and Z = 2. The noncentrosymmetric structure, which has few analogues, is composed of isotypic puckered hexagonal ZnS and CaO layers arranged so that ZnS3O tetrahedra are all aligned parallel, resulting in a polar structure. The compound shows type 1 non-phase-matchable second harmonic generation, determined using 1064 nm radiation, with an efficiency approximately 100 times that of alpha-SiO2 and a piezoelectric coefficient of 38 pm V-1. Although polar, CaZnOS is not ferroelectric and the pyroelectric coefficient is very small, approximately 0.0 microC m-2 K-1 between room temperature and 100 degrees C.

Structural Chemistry and Metamagnetism of an Homologous Series of Layered Manganese Oxysulfides

An homologous series of layered oxysulfides Sr2MnO2Cu(2m-delta)S(m+1) with metamagnetic properties is described. Sr2MnO2Cu(2-delta)S2 (m = 1), Sr2MnO2Cu(4-delta)S3 (m = 2) and Sr2MnO2Cu(6-delta)S4 (m = 3), consist of MnO2 sheets separated from antifluorite-type copper sulfide layers of variable thickness by Sr(2+) ions. All three compounds show substantial and similar copper deficiencies (delta approximately equal to 0.5) in the copper sulfide layers, and single-crystal X-ray and powder neutron diffraction measurements show that the copper ions in the m = 2 and m = 3 compounds are crystallographically disordered, consistent with the possibility of high two-dimensional copper ion mobility. Magnetic susceptibility measurements show high-temperature Curie-Weiss behavior with magnetic moments consistent with high spin manganese ions which have been oxidized to the (2+delta)+ state in order to maintain a full Cu-3d/S-3p valence band, and the compounds are correspondingly p-type semiconductors with resistivities around 25 Omega cm at 295 K. Positive Weiss temperatures indicate net ferromagnetic interactions between moments. Accordingly, magnetic susceptibility measurements and low-temperature powder neutron diffraction measurements show that the moments within a MnO(2) sheet couple ferromagnetically and that weaker antiferromagnetic coupling between sheets leads to A-type antiferromagnets in zero applied magnetic field. Sr2MnO2Cu(5.5)S4 and Sr2MnO2Cu(3.5)S3 are metamagnets which may be driven into the fully ordered ferromagnetic state below 25 K by the application of fields of 0.06 and 1.3 T respectively. The relationships between the compositions, structures, and physical properties of these compounds, and the prospects for chemical control of the properties, are discussed.