Pressure-induced isostructural phase transition in Ti3AlC2: experimental and theoretical investigation

Pressure-Induced Structural Phase Transition in EuNi2P2

EuNi2P2 was studied with a diamond anvil cell (DAC) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The structural evolution of powder crystal EuNi2P2 under high pressure up to 137 GPa and its single-crystal structure up to 9 GPa were reported. The unique structural phase transition of this 122-type crystal occurred above 70 GPa in powder crystal EuNi2P2. The diffraction data from single-crystal EuNi2P2 revealed the coordinate change of the P atom, and the stability of the crystal at 9 GPa was confirmed. The crystal EuNi2P2 remained stable with a tetragonal phase without obvious symmetry changes during compression to 137 GPa.

Bulk Superlattice Analogues for Energy Conversion

Energy storage and conversion in a clean, efficient, and safe way is the core appeal of a modern sustainable society, which is built on the development of multifunctional materials. Superlattice structures can integrate the advantage of their sublayers while new phenomena may arise from the interface, which play key roles in modern semiconductor technology; however, additional concerns such as stability and yield challenge their large-scale applications in industrial products. In this Perspective we focus our interest on a distinctive category of easily available multilayered inorganic materials that have well-defined subunit structures and can be regarded as bulk superlattice analogues. We illustrate several specific combining forms of subunits in bulk superlattice analogues, including soft/rigid sublayers, electron/phonon transport sublayers, quasi-two-dimensional layers, and intercalated metal layers. We hope to provide insights into material design and broaden the application scope in the field of energy conversion by integrating the versatility of subunits into these bulk superlattice analogues.