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Zhang Z, Porter AP, Sun Y, Belashchenko KD, Viswanathan G, Sarkar A, Gamage EH, Kovnir K, Ho KM, Antropov V. Unveiling a Family of Dimerized Quantum Magnets, Conventional Antiferromagnets, and Nonmagnets in Ternary Metal Borides. J Am Chem Soc 2024. [PMID: 38832750 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.4c05478] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/05/2024]
Abstract
Dimerized quantum magnets are exotic crystalline materials where Bose-Einstein condensation of magnetic excitations can happen. However, known dimerized quantum magnets are limited to only a few oxides and halides. Here, we unveil 9 dimerized quantum magnets and 11 conventional antiferromagnets in ternary metal borides MTB4 (M = Sc, Y, La, Ce, Lu, Mg, Ca, and Al; T = V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, and Ni), where T atoms are arranged in structural dimers. Quantum magnetism in these compounds is dominated by strong antiferromagnetic (AFM) interactions between Cr (Cr and Mn for M = Mg and Ca) atoms within the dimers, with much weaker interactions between the dimers. These systems are proposed to be close to a quantum critical point between a disordered singlet spin-dimer phase, with a spin gap, and the ordered conventional Néel AFM phase. They greatly enrich the materials inventory that allows investigations of the spin-gap phase. Conventional antiferromagnetism in these compounds is dominated by ferromagnetic Mn (Fe for M = Mg and Ca) interactions within the dimers. The predicted stable and nonmagnetic (NM) YFeB4 phase is synthesized and characterized, providing a scarce candidate to study Fe dimers and Fe ladders in borides. The identified quantum, conventional, and NM systems provide a platform with abundant possibilities to tune the magnetic exchange coupling by doping and study the unconventional quantum phase transition and conventional magnetic transitions. This work opens new avenues for studying novel magnetism in borides arising from spin dimers and establishes a theoretical workflow for future searches for dimerized quantum magnets in other families of materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhen Zhang
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 50011, United States
| | - Andrew P Porter
- Department of Chemistry, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 50011, United States
- Ames National Laboratory, U.S. Department of Energy, Ames, Iowa 50011, United States
| | - Yang Sun
- Department of Physics, Xiamen University, Xiamen 361005, China
| | - Kirill D Belashchenko
- Department of Physics and Astronomy and Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, Nebraska 68588, United States
| | - Gayatri Viswanathan
- Department of Chemistry, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 50011, United States
- Ames National Laboratory, U.S. Department of Energy, Ames, Iowa 50011, United States
| | - Arka Sarkar
- Department of Chemistry, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 50011, United States
- Ames National Laboratory, U.S. Department of Energy, Ames, Iowa 50011, United States
| | - Eranga H Gamage
- Department of Chemistry, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 50011, United States
- Ames National Laboratory, U.S. Department of Energy, Ames, Iowa 50011, United States
| | - Kirill Kovnir
- Department of Chemistry, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 50011, United States
- Ames National Laboratory, U.S. Department of Energy, Ames, Iowa 50011, United States
| | - Kai-Ming Ho
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 50011, United States
| | - Vladimir Antropov
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 50011, United States
- Ames National Laboratory, U.S. Department of Energy, Ames, Iowa 50011, United States
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Zheng Q, Wagner FR, Ormeci A, Prots Y, Burkhardt U, Schmidt M, Schnelle W, Grin Y, Leithe-Jasper A. Interpenetration of a 3D Icosahedral M@Ni12 (M=Al, Ga) Framework with Porphyrin-Reminiscent Boron Layers in MNi9 B8. Chemistry 2015; 21:16532-40. [PMID: 26418894 DOI: 10.1002/chem.201502266] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2015] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Two ternary borides MNi9 B8 (M=Al, Ga) were synthesized by thermal treatment of mixtures of the elements. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction data reveal AlNi9 B8 and GaNi9 B8 crystallizing in a new type of structure within the space group Cmcm and the lattice parameters a=7.0896(3) Å, b=8.1181(3) Å, c=10.6497(4) Å and a=7.0897(5) Å, b=8.1579(4) Å, c=10.6648(7) Å, respectively. The boron atoms build up two-dimensional layers, which consist of puckered [B16 ] rings with two tailing B atoms, whereas the M atoms reside in distorted vertices-condensed [Ni12 ] icosahedra, which form a three-dimensional framework interpenetrated by boron porphyrin-reminiscent layers. An unusual local arrangement resembling a giant metallo-porphyrin entity is formed by the [B16 ] rings, which, due to their large annular size of approximately 8 Å, chelate four of the twelve icosahedral Ni atoms. An analysis of the chemical bonding by means of the electron localizability approach reveals strong covalent B-B interactions and weak Ni-Ni interactions. Multi-center dative B-Ni interaction occurs between the Al-Ni framework and the boron layers. In agreement with the chemical bonding analysis and band structure calculations, AlNi9 B8 is a Pauli-paramagnetic metal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiang Zheng
- Max-Planck-Institut für Chemische Physik fester Stoffe, Nöthnitzer Str. 40, 01187 Dresden (Germany)
| | - Frank R Wagner
- Max-Planck-Institut für Chemische Physik fester Stoffe, Nöthnitzer Str. 40, 01187 Dresden (Germany)
| | - Alim Ormeci
- Max-Planck-Institut für Chemische Physik fester Stoffe, Nöthnitzer Str. 40, 01187 Dresden (Germany)
| | - Yurii Prots
- Max-Planck-Institut für Chemische Physik fester Stoffe, Nöthnitzer Str. 40, 01187 Dresden (Germany)
| | - Ulrich Burkhardt
- Max-Planck-Institut für Chemische Physik fester Stoffe, Nöthnitzer Str. 40, 01187 Dresden (Germany)
| | - Marcus Schmidt
- Max-Planck-Institut für Chemische Physik fester Stoffe, Nöthnitzer Str. 40, 01187 Dresden (Germany)
| | - Walter Schnelle
- Max-Planck-Institut für Chemische Physik fester Stoffe, Nöthnitzer Str. 40, 01187 Dresden (Germany)
| | - Yuri Grin
- Max-Planck-Institut für Chemische Physik fester Stoffe, Nöthnitzer Str. 40, 01187 Dresden (Germany)
| | - Andreas Leithe-Jasper
- Max-Planck-Institut für Chemische Physik fester Stoffe, Nöthnitzer Str. 40, 01187 Dresden (Germany).
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