Translational Antiphase Boundaries in NaNbO3 Antiferroelectrics

Planar defects are known to be of importance in affecting the functional properties of materials. Translational antiphase boundaries (APBs) in particular have attracted considerable attention in perovskite oxides, but little is known in lead-free antiferroelectric oxides that are promising candidates for energy storage applications. Here, we present a study of translational APBs in prototypical antiferroelectric NaNbO3 using aberration-corrected (scanning) transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques at different length scales. The translational APBs in NaNbO3 are characterized by a 2-fold-modulated structure, which is antipolar in nature and exhibits a high density, different from the polar nature and lower density in PbZrO3. The high stability of translational APBs against external electric fields and elevated temperatures was revealed using ex situ and in situ TEM experiments and is expected to be associated with their antipolar nature. Density functional theory calculations demonstrate that translational APBs possess only slightly higher free energy than the antiferroelectric and ferroelectric phase energies with differences of 29 and 33 meV/f.u., respectively, justifying their coexistence down to the nanoscale at room temperature. These results provide a detailed atomistic elucidation of translational APBs in NaNbO3 with antipolar character and stability against external stimuli, establishing the basis of defect engineering of antiferroelectrics for energy storage devices.

Tuning of Polar Domain Boundaries in Nonpolar Perovskite

Domain boundaries in ferroic materials are found to have various physical properties not observed in the surrounding domains. Such differences can be enhanced and bring promising functionalities when centrosymmetric nonpolar materials encounter polar domain boundaries. In this work, a tunable polar domain boundary is discovered in an antiferroelectric single crystal. Under a small stress or electric field, the density, volume, and polarity of the boundaries are successfully controlled.

Probing the Ni(OH)2 Precursor for LiNiO2 at the Atomic Scale: Insights into the Origin of Structural Defect in a Layered Cathode Active Material

In lithium ion batteries (LIBs), the layered cathode materials of composition LiNi_{1- x - y} Co_x Mn_y O₂  are critical for achieving high energy densities. A high nickel content (>80%) provides an attractive balance between high energy density, long lifetime, and low cost. Consequently, Ni-rich layered oxides cathode active materials (CAMs) are in high demand, and the importance of LiNiO₂ (LNO) as limiting case, is hence paramount. However, achieving perfect stoichiometry is a challenge resulting in various structural issues, which successively impact physicochemical properties and result in the capacity fade of LIBs. To better understand defect formation in LNO, the role of the Ni(OH)₂  precursor morphology in the synthesis of LNO requires in-depth investigation. By employing aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy, electron energy loss spectroscopy, and precession electron diffraction, a direct observation of defects in the Ni(OH)₂  precursor preparedis reported and the ex situ structural evolution from the precursor to the end product is monitored. During synthesis, the layered Ni(OH)₂  structure transforms to partially lithiated (non-layered) NiO and finally to layered LNO. The results suggest that the defects observed in commercially relevant CAMs originate to a large extent from the precursors, hence care must be taken in tuning the co-precipitation parameters to synthesize defect-free Ni-rich layered oxides CAMs.

Oxygen Vacancy Formation and Migration within the Antiphase Boundaries in Lanthanum Scandate-Based Oxides: Computational Study

The atomic structure of antiphase boundaries in Sr-doped lanthanum scandate (La_1−xSr_xScO_3−δ) perovskite, promising as the proton conductor, was modelled by means of DFT method. Two structural types of interfaces formed by structural octahedral coupling were constructed: edge- and face-shared. The energetic stability of these two interfaces was investigated. The mechanisms of oxygen vacancy formation and migration in both types of interfaces were modelled. It was shown that both interfaces are structurally stable and facilitate oxygen ionic migration. Oxygen vacancy formation energy in interfaces is lower than that in the regular structure, which favours the oxygen vacancy segregation within such interfaces. The calculated energy profile suggests that both types of interfaces are advantageous for oxygen ion migration in the material.

Signature of antiphase boundaries in iron oxide nanoparticles

Iron oxide nanoparticles find a wide variety of applications, including targeted drug delivery and hyperthermia in advanced cancer treatment methods. An important property of these particles is their maximum net magnetization, which has been repeatedly reported to be drastically lower than the bulk reference value. Previous studies have shown that planar lattice defects known as antiphase boundaries (APBs) have an important influence on the particle magnetization. The influence of APBs on the atomic spin structure of nanoparticles with the γ-Fe2O3 composition is examined via Monte Carlo simulations, explicitly considering dipole-dipole interactions between the magnetic moments that have previously only been approximated. For a single APB passing through the particle centre, a reduction in the magnetization of 3.9% (for 9 nm particles) to 7.9% (for 5 nm particles) is found in saturation fields of 1.5 T compared with a particle without this defect. Additionally, on the basis of Debye scattering equation simulations, the influence of APBs on X-ray powder diffraction patterns is shown. The Fourier transform of the APB peak profile is developed to be used in a whole powder pattern modelling approach to determine the presence of APBs and quantify them by fits to powder diffraction patterns. This is demonstrated on experimental data, where it could be shown that the number of APBs is related to the observed reduction in magnetization.

Impact of Antiphase Boundaries on Structural, Magnetic and Vibrational Properties of Fe3Al

We performed a quantum-mechanical study of the effect of antiphase boundaries (APBs) on structural, magnetic and vibrational properties of Fe3Al compound. The studied APBs have the {001} crystallographic orientation of their sharp interfaces and they are characterized by a 1/2〈111〉 shift of atomic planes. There are two types of APB interfaces formed by either two adjacent planes of Fe atoms or by two adjacent planes containing both Fe and Al atoms. The averaged APB interface energy is found to be 80 mJ/m2 and we estimate the APB interface energy of each of the two types of interfaces to be within the range of 40–120 mJ/m2. The studied APBs affect local magnetic moments of Fe atoms near the defects, increasing magnetic moments of FeII atoms by as much as 11.8% and reducing those of FeI atoms by up to 4%. When comparing phonons in the Fe3Al with and without APBs within the harmonic approximation, we find a very strong influence of APBs. In particular, we have found a significant reduction of gap in frequencies that separates phonon modes below 7.9 THz and above 9.2 THz in the defect-free Fe3Al. All the APBs-induced changes result in a higher free energy, lower entropy and partly also a lower harmonic phonon energy in Fe3Al with APBs when compared with those in the defect-free bulk Fe3Al.

An Ab Initio Study of Magnetism in Disordered Fe-Al Alloys with Thermal Antiphase Boundaries

We have performed a quantum-mechanical study of a B2 phase of Fe70Al30 alloy with and without antiphase boundaries (APBs) with the {001} crystallographic orientation of APB interfaces. We used a supercell approach with the atoms distributed according to the special quasi-random structure (SQS) concept. Our study was motivated by experimental findings by Murakami et al. (Nature Comm. 5 (2014) 4133) who reported significantly higher magnetic flux density from A2-phase interlayers at the thermally-induced APBs in Fe70Al30 and suggested that the ferromagnetism is stabilized by the disorder in the A2 phase. Our computational study of sharp APBs (without any A2-phase interlayer) indicates that they have moderate APB energies (≈0.1 J/m2) and cannot explain the experimentally detected increase in the ferromagnetism because they often induce a ferro-to-ferrimagnetic transition. When studying thermal APBs, we introduce a few atomic layers of A2 phase of Fe70Al30 into the interface of sharp APBs. The averaged computed magnetic moment of Fe atoms in the whole B2/A2 nanocomposite is then increased by 11.5% w.r.t. the B2 phase. The A2 phase itself (treated separately as a bulk) has the total magnetic moment even higher, by 17.5%, and this increase also applies if the A2 phase at APBs is sufficiently thick (the experimental value is 2–3 nm). We link the changes in the magnetism to the facts that (i) the Al atoms in the first nearest neighbor (1NN) shell of Fe atoms nonlinearly reduce their magnetic moments and (ii) there are on average less Al atoms in the 1NN shell of Fe atoms in the A2 phase. These effects synergically combine with the influence of APBs which provide local atomic configurations not existing in an APB-free bulk. The identified mechanism of increasing the magnetic properties by introducing APBs with disordered phases can be used as a designing principle when developing new magnetic materials.

A Quantum-Mechanical Study of Clean and Cr-Segregated Antiphase Boundaries in Fe3Al

We present a quantum-mechanical study of thermodynamic, structural, elastic, and magnetic properties of selected antiphase boundaries (APBs) in Fe3Al with the D03 crystal structure with and without Cr atoms. The computed APBs are sharp (not thermal), and they have {001} crystallographic orientation. They are characterized by a mutual shift of grains by 1/2〈100〉a where a is the lattice parameter of a cube-shaped 16-atom elementary cell of Fe3Al, i.e., they affect the next nearest neighbors (APB-NNN type, also called APB-D03). Regarding clean APBs in Fe3Al, the studied ones have only a very minor impact on the structural and magnetic properties, including local magnetic moments, and the APB energy is rather low, about 80 ± 25 mJ/m2. Interestingly, they have a rather strong impact on the anisotropic (tensorial) elastic properties with the APB-induced change from a cubic symmetry to a tetragonal one, which is sensitively reflected by the directional dependence of linear compressibility. The Cr atoms have a strong impact on magnetic properties and a complex influence on the energetics of APBs. In particular, the Cr atoms in Fe3Al exhibit clustering tendencies even in the presence of APBs and cause a transition from a ferromagnetic (Cr-free Fe3Al) into a ferrimagnetic state. The Fe atoms with Cr atoms in their first coordination shell have their local atomic magnetic moments reduced. This reduction is synergically enhanced (to the point when Fe atoms are turned non-magnetic) when the influence of clustering of Cr atoms is combined with APBs, which offer specific atomic environments not existing in the APB-free bulk Fe3Al. The impact of Cr atoms on APB energies in Fe3Al is found to be ambiguous, including reduction, having a negligible influence or increasing APB energies depending on the local atomic configuration of Cr atoms, as well as their concentration.

Understanding intercalation compounds for sodium-ion batteries and beyond

Intercalation compounds are popular candidate electrode materials for sodium-ion batteries and other 'beyond lithium-ion' technologies including potassium- and magnesium-ion batteries. We summarize first-principles efforts to elucidate the behaviour of such compounds in the layered and spinel structures. Trends based on the size and valence of the intercalant and the ionicity of the host are sufficient to explain phase stability and ordering phenomena, which in turn determine the equilibrium voltage profile. For the layered structures, we provide an overarching view of intercalant orderings in prismatic coordination based on antiphase boundaries, which has important consequences for diffusion. We examine details of stacking sequence transitions between different layered structures by calculating stacking fault energies and discussing the nature of dislocations. A better understanding of these transitions will likely aid the development of batteries with improved cyclability. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue 'Energy materials for a low carbon future'.

Structure model of γ-Al2O3 based on planar defects

The defect structure of γ-Al₂O₃ derived from boehmite was investigated using a combination of selected-area electron diffraction (SAED) and powder X-ray diffraction (XRD). Both methods confirmed a strong dependence of the diffraction line broadening on the diffraction indices known from literature. The analysis of the SAED patterns revealed that the dominant structure defects in the spinel-type γ-Al₂O₃ are antiphase boundaries located on the lattice planes , which produce the sublattice shifts . Quantitative information about the defect structure of γ-Al₂O₃ was obtained from the powder XRD patterns. This includes mainly the size of γ-Al₂O₃ crystallites and the density of planar defects. The correlation between the density of the planar defects and the presence of structural vacancies, which maintain the stoichiometry of the spinel-type γ-Al₂O₃, is discussed. A computer routine running on a fast graphical processing unit was written for simulation of the XRD patterns. This routine calculates the atomic positions for a given kind and density of planar defect, and simulates the diffracted intensities with the aid of the Debye scattering equation.

Bulk Single Crystal-Like Structural and Magnetic Characteristics of Epitaxial Spinel Ferrite Thin Films with Elimination of Antiphase Boundaries

Spinel ferrite NiFe₂ O₄ thin films have been grown on three isostructural substrates, MgAl₂ O₄ , MgGa₂ O₄ , and CoGa₂ O₄ using pulsed laser deposition. These substrates have lattice mismatches of 3.1%, 0.8%, and 0.2%, respectively, with NiFe₂ O₄ . As expected, the films grown on MgAl₂ O₄ substrate show the presence of the antiphase boundary defects. However, no antiphase boundaries (APBs) are observed for films grown on near-lattice-matched substrates MgGa₂ O₄ and CoGa₂ O₄ . This demonstrates that by using isostructural and lattice-matched substrates, the formation of APBs can be avoided in NiFe₂ O₄ thin films. Consequently, static and dynamic magnetic properties comparable with the bulk can be realized. Initial results indicate similar improvements in film quality and magnetic properties due to the elimination of APBs in other members of the spinel ferrite family, such as Fe₃ O₄ and CoFe₂ O₄ , which have similar crystallographic structure and lattice constants as NiFe₂ O₄ .