A novel superhard boron nitride polymorph with monoclinic symmetry

In this work, a new superhard material named Pm BN is proposed. The structural properties, stability, mechanical properties, mechanical anisotropy properties, and electronic properties of Pm BN are studied in this work. Pm BN is dynamically and mechanically stable, the relative enthalpy of Pm BN is greater than that of c-BN, and in this respect, and it is more favorable than that of T-B₃N₃, T-B₇N₇, tP24 BN, Imm2 BN, NiAs BN, and rocksalt BN. The Young's modulus, bulk modulus, and shear modulus of Pm BN are 327 GPa, 331 GPa, and 738 GPa, respectively, and according to Chen's model, Pm BN is a novel superhard material. Compared with its original structure, the mechanical anisotropy of Young's modulus of Pm BN is larger than that of C14 carbon. Finally, the calculations of the electronic energy band structure show that Pm BN is a semiconductor material with not only a wide band gap but also an indirect band gap.     

Theoretical investigation on the electronic structure,elastic properties,and intrinsic hardness of Si₂N₂O

According to the density functional theory we systematically study the electronic structure, the mechanical prop- erties and the intrinsic hardness of Si2N2O polymorphs using the first-principles method. The elastic constants of four Si2N2O structures are obtained using the stress-strain method. The mechanical moduli (bulk modulus, Young’s mod- ulus, and shear modulus) are evaluated using the Voigt-Reuss-Hill approach. It is found that the tetragonal Si2N2O exhibits a larger mechanical modulus than the other phases. Some empirical methods are used to calculate the Vickers hardnesses of the Si2N2O structures. We further estimate the Vickers hardnesses of the four Si2N2O crystal structures, suggesting all Si2N2O phases are not the superhard compounds. The results imply that the tetragonal Si2N2O is the hardest phase. The hardness of tetragonal Si2N2O is 31.52 GPa which is close to values of β-Si3N4 and γ-Si3N4.     

A new superhard carbon allotrope: Orthorhombic C20

A new superhard carbon orthorhombic allotrope oC20 is proposed, which exhibits distinct topologies including C4, C3 and two types of C6 carbon rings. The calculated elastic constants and phonon spectra reveal that oC20 is mechanically and dynamically stable at ambient pressure. The calculated electronic band structure of oC20 shows that it is an indirect band gap semiconductor with a band gap of 4.46 eV. The Vickers hardness of oC20 is 75 GPa. The calculated tensile and shear strength indicate that the weakest tensile strength is 64 GPa and the weakest shear strength is 48 GPa, which means oC20 is a potential superhard material.     

钙钛矿结构ZrBeO3稳定性的第一性原理研究

基于密度泛函理论构建了钙钛矿结构ZrBeO3晶体模型,计算了该晶体模型结合能,表明了该构型热力学稳定性;计算出该结构在不同压力下的弹性常数,并据此计算了ZrBeO3的体积模量、剪切模量、杨氏模量、泊松比、BH/GH(体模量/剪切模量)等参数,结果表明该材料具有机械稳定性,随着等静压力增加,材料由脆性向韧性转变;计算了零压下ZrBeO3的硬度,为34.5 GPa,表明该结构晶体应为超硬材料;计算了ZrBeO3的声子能谱,结果表明ZrBeO3在低温零压下热动力学不稳定,为此分析比较了不同压力下的声子能谱、不同原子轨道及化学键布居值,研究表明随着压力增加,Be原子sp杂化后形成的Be-O共价键成分增强、Zr-O键离子键成分增强,晶格动力学趋于稳定。     

First‐principles study of CrB4 as a high shear modulus compound

First‐principles calculations were carried out to investigate the synthesized orthorhombic CrB₄. Our calculations show that the shear modulus of orthorhombic CrB₄ is much higher than that of superhard WB₄. Moreover, its shear modulus is larger than its bulk modulus. Boron atoms in CrB₄ form a strong covalent cage which dramatically increases its mechanical strength. The calculated elastic constants imply that CrB₄ is elastically stable. The calculated density of states shows that CrB₄ is metallic. The appearance of pesudogap near the Fermi level means that CrB₄ is a stable compound. (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Ground-State Structure and Physical Properties of NB_2 Predicted from First Principles

Using the newly developed particle swarm optimization algorithm on crystal structural prediction,we predict a new class of boron nitride with stoichiometry of NB_2 at ambient pressure,which belongs to the tetragonal I4m2 space group.Then,its structure,elastic properties,electronic structure,and chemical bonding are investigated by first-principles calculations with the density functional theory.The phonon calculation and elastic constants confirm that the predicted NB_2 is dynamically and mechanically stable,respectively.The large bulk modulus,large shear modulus,large Young's modulus,and small Poisson's ratio show that the I4m2 NB_2 should be a new superhard material with a calculated theoretical Vickers hardness value of 66 GPa.Further analysis on density of states and eiectron localization function demonstrate that the strong B-B and B-N covalent bonds are the main reason for its high hardness in I4m2 NB_2.     

o-C8碳：新的超硬碳同素异形体

通过粒子群优化算法和密度泛函计算,证明了空间群为PMMA的正交晶系的碳同素异形体o-C₈是稳定的超硬相. 声子谱计算表明,o-C₈碳相是动力学稳定的;体积压缩计算表明,它是体模量为298.6 GPa的高度不可压缩材料. o-C₈相是一种新型的密度为2.993 g/cm³、维氏硬度为67.0 GPa的低密度超硬材料.     

First-principles study of two new boron nitride structures:C12-BN and O16-BN

Based on the first-principles method,we predict two new stable BN allotropes:C12-BN and O16-BN,which belong to cubic and orthorhombic crystal systems,respectively.It is confirmed that both the phases are thermally and dynamically stable.The results of molecular dynamics simulations suggest that both the BN phases are highly stable even at high temperatures of 1000 K.In the case of mechanical properties,C12-BN has a bulk modulus of 359 GPa and a hardness of 43.4 GPa,making it a novel superhard material with potential technological and industrial applications.Electronic band calculations reveal that both C12-BN and O16-BN are insulators with direct band gaps of 3.02 e V and 3.54 e V,respectively.The XRD spectra of C12-BN and O16-BN are also simulated to provide more information for possible experimental observation.Our findings enrich the BN allotrope family and are expected to stimulate further experimental interest.     

Mechanical properties and hardness of new carbon-rich superhard C11N4 from first-principles investigations

The structural, mechanical properties and hardness of the new carbon-rich material C₁₁N₄ are studied by first-principles total energy calculations based on the density-functional theory. We use the empirical equations of state (EOS) to investigate the lattice properties and bulk modulus. It is found that the calculated lattice constants and bulk modulus are in good agreement with previous calculations. And the full set elastic constants are calculated using the stress-strain method. The Voigt-Reuss-Hill approximation is used to evaluate the mechanical moduli. The elastic constants show that the two phases of C₁₁N₄ are mechanically stable. The tetragonal-C₁₁N₄ (α-C₁₁N₄) exhibits larger mechanical moduli than the orthorhombic-C₁₁N₄ (β-C₁₁N₄). The mechanical anisotropy is calculated of several different anisotropic indexes and factors, such as universal anisotropic index (A^U), the percent anisotropy (A_G and A_B) and shear anisotropic factors (A₁, A₂ and A₃). Furthermore, the hardness of α-C₁₁N₄ and β-C₁₁N₄ are evaluated according to the intrinsic hardness calculation theory. α-C₁₁N₄ is predicted to be a superhard material with the Vickers hardness of 67.17 GPa, which is slightly higher than that of the cubic boron nitride. And the β-C₁₁N₄ is also a superhard material with the calculated Vickers hardness of 45.63 GPa. C₁₁N₄ can be considered as candidate superhard compounds.     

Strength and equation of state of molybdenum triboride under 80 GPa pressure,using radial X-ray diffraction

The strength and equation of state of molybdenum triboride have been determined under nonhydrostatic compression up to 80?GPa, using an angle-dispersive radial X-ray diffraction technique in a diamond anvil cell (DAC). The RXD data yield a bulk modulus and its pressure derivative as K_0?=?342(6)?GPa with K₀′?=?2.11(17) at ψ?=?54.7°. Analysis of diffraction data using the strain theory indicates that the ratio of differential stress to shear modulus (t/G) ranges from 0.002 to 0.050 at pressures of 4–80?GPa. Together with theoretical results on the high pressure shear modulus, our results here show that molybdenum triboride sample under uniaxial compression can support a differential stress of ～10?GPa when it started to yield with plastic deformation at ～30?GPa. In addition, we draw a conclusion that MoB₃ is not a superhard material but a hard material.     

强冲击压缩条件下g-C3N4向β-C3N4直接转化

 为了合成出理论预言的具有致密结构的超硬材料C₃N₄,运用二级轻气炮加载和冲击回收实验技术,以富含N的g-C₃N₄为前驱物,在40~65 GPa压力下完成了冲击合成实验。在低于51 GPa压力时,X射线衍射分析表明,在回收样品中未发现有新相生成,说明g-C₃N₄是稳定的;而在51~65 GPa范围内,回收样品中有新相生成,与理论计算结果对照发现,新相为β-C₃N₄相,且不含其它结晶相。证实利用冲击合成方法将g-C₃N₄直接转化为单纯β-C₃N₄是可能的,对纯净的超硬相碳氮化合物的合成研究具有参考意义。     

Supreme shear modulus predicted in the monocarbide system: the Rex W1–x C alloy

The energetic, mechanical and electronic properties as a function of composition for Re_x W_1–x C alloys in the WC structure have been investigated. It has been demonstrated that the shear modulus of WC can be enhanced by alloying with a small amount of Re, to a maximum shear modulus of 311 GPa at x = 0.23. The designed alloy is energetically stable and could be expected to be a potential extremely hard transition‐metal monocarbide, which is attributed to the strong metal–metalloid interaction with modulated valence electron concentration with respect to WC. (© 2009 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Full potential calculation of structural, elastic properties and high-pressure phase of binary noble metal carbide: ruthenium carbide

We present in this paper the results of an ab initio theoretical study within the local density approximation (LDA) to determine in rock-salt (B1), cesium chloride (B2), zinc-blende (B3), and tungsten carbide (WC) type structures, the structural, elastic constants, hardness properties and high-pressure phase of the noble metal carbide of ruthenium carbide (RuC).The ground state properties such as the equilibrium lattice constant, elastic constant, the bulk modulus, its pressure derivative, and the hardness in the four phases are determined and compared with available theoretical data. Only for the three phases B1, B3, and WC, is the RuC mechanically stable, while in the B2 phase it is unstable, but in B3 RuC is the most energetically favourable phase with the bulk modulus 263 GPa, and at sufficiently high pressure (P_t=19.2 GPa) the tungsten carbide (WC) structure would be favoured, where ReC-WC is meta-stable.The highest bulk modulus values in the B3, B2, and WC structures and the hardnesses of H(B3)=36.94 GPa, H(B1)=25.21 GPa, and H(WC)=25.30 GPa indicate that the RuC compound is a superhard material in B3, and is not superhard in B1 and WC structures compared with the H(diamond)=96 GPa.     

Theoretical investigation on the electronic structure, elastic properties, and intrinsic hardness of Si2N2O

According to the density functional theory we systematically study the electronic structure, the mechanical prop- erties and the intrinsic hardness of Si2N2O polymorphs using the first-principles method. The elastic constants of four Si2N2O structures are obtained using the stress-strain method. The mechanical moduli (bulk modulus, Young’s mod- ulus, and shear modulus) are evaluated using the Voigt-Reuss-Hill approach. It is found that the tetragonal Si2N2O exhibits a larger mechanical modulus than the other phases. Some empirical methods are used to calculate the Vickers hardnesses of the Si2N2O structures. We further estimate the Vickers hardnesses of the four Si2N2O crystal structures, suggesting all Si2N2O phases are not the superhard compounds. The results imply that the tetragonal Si2N2O is the hardest phase. The hardness of tetragonal Si2N2O is 31.52 GPa which is close to values of β-Si3N4 and γ-Si3N4.     

Elastic and thermodynamic properties of vanadium nitride under pressure and the effect of metallic bonding on its hardness

By the particle-swarm optimization method, it is predicted that tetragonal P42mc, 141md, and orthorhombic Amm2 phases of vanadium nitride （VN） are energetically more stable than NaCl-type structure at 0 K. The enthalpies of the predicted three new VN phases, along with WC, NaC1, AsNi, CsCl type structures, are calculated each as a function of pressure. It is found that VN exhibits the WC-to-CsCl type phase transition at 256 GPa. For the considered seven crystal- lographic VN phases, the structures, elastic constants, bulk moduli, shear moduli, and Debye temperatures are investigated. Our calculated equilibrium structural parameters are in very good agreement with the available experimental results and the previous theoretical results for the NaC1 phase. The Debye temperatures of VN predicted three novel phases, which are all higher than those of the remaining structures. The elastic constants, thermodynamic properties, and elastic anisotropies of VN under pressure are obtained and the mechanical stabilities are analyzed in detail based on the mechanical stability criteria. Moreover, the effect of metallic bonding on the hardness of VN is also investigated, which shows that VNs in P42mc, 141md, and Amm2 phases are potential superhard phases. Further investigation on the experimental level is highly recommended to confirm our calculations presented in this paper.     

Mechanical properties of superhard diamondlike BC5

Using first-principles calculations, we systematically studied the mechanical properties and electronic structure of the recently synthesized diamondlike BC₅. Our calculated bulk modulus B, shear modulus G, elastic constant c₄₄, and theoretical hardness H confirm that BC₅ is an ultraincompressible and superhard material. Also, it exhibits mechanical stability and metallic features. Electronic structures show that a strong covalent bond network through sp³ hybridization is the origin of the excellent mechanical properties of BC₅. Our results show that BC₅ has good prospects in electronic application as a superhard material.     

Superhard F-carbon predicted by ab initio particle-swarm optimization methodology

A simple (5 + 6 + 7)-sp(3) carbon (denoted as F-carbon) with eight atoms per unit cell predicted by a newly developed ab initio particle-swarm optimization methodology on crystal structure prediction is proposed. F-carbon can be seen as the reconstruction of AA-stacked or 3R-graphite, and is energetically more stable than 2H-graphite beyond 13.9 GPa. Band structure and hardness calculations indicate that F-carbon is a transparent superhard carbon with a gap of 4.55 eV at 15 GPa and a hardness of 93.9 GPa at zero pressure. Compared with the previously proposed Bct-, M- and W-carbons, the simulative x-ray diffraction pattern of F-carbon also well matches the superhard intermediate phase of the experimentally cold-compressed graphite. The possible transition route and energy barrier were observed using the variable cell nudged elastic band method. Our simulations show that the cold compression of graphite can produce some reversible metastable carbons (e.g. M- and F-carbons) with energy barriers close to diamond or lonsdaleite.     

新型石墨插层化合物HfC2结构与性质的第一性原理研究

在高压下,预测一种新型石墨插层化合物HfC₂.采用第一性原理方法对其在0 GPa下的结构和性质进行研究,分别采用GGA-PBESOL、GGA-PW91和LDA方法进行结构优化,得到的晶体学数据基本相同.弹性常数和声子谱计算证实其力学和晶格动力学稳定性,表明HfC₂在0 GPa下能够稳定存在.采用GGA-PBESOL方法计算得到HfC₂的体模量和剪切模量达到265 GPa和118 GPa,Pugh比k<0.57,是一种具有高体模量的韧性材料.HfC₂存在C-C、Hf-C共价作用,且具有金属特性和特殊层状结构,是其具有高体模量和韧性的原因.最后,对HfC₂在0~500 GPa内的键长、体模量、剪切模量、k值等进行研究,探索其力学性质随压力变化的规律.     

Effects of alloying element on stabilities,electronic structures,and mechanical properties of Pd-based superalloys

The thermodynamic stabilities, electronic structures, and mechanical properties of the Pd-based superalloys are studied by first principles calculations. In this work, we discuss the effect of Pd-based superalloys made from Al, Si, Sc, Ti,V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, Y, Zr, Nb, Mo, Tc, Hf, Ta, W, Re, Os, Ir and Pt, and we also calculate a face centered cubic(fcc)structure 2 × 2 × 2 superalloy including 31 Pd atoms and one alloying element T M(Pd_(31)TM). The mixing energies of these Pd-Based superalloys are negative, indicating that all Pd-based superalloys are thermodynamically stable. The Pd_(31)Mn has the lowest mixing energy with a value of-0.97 eV/atom. The electronic structures of the Pd-based superalloys are also studied, the densities of states, elastic constants and moduli of the mechanical properties of the Pd-based superalloys are determined by the stress-strain method and Voigt–Reuss–Hill approximation. It is found that Pd_(31)TM is mechanically stable, and Pd_(31)Tc has the largest C_(11), with a value 279.7 GPa. The Pd_(31)Cr has the highest bulk modulus with a value of299.8 GPa. The Pd_(31)Fe has the largest shear modulus and Young's modulus with the values of 73.8 GPa and 195.2 GPa,respectively. By using the anisotropic index, the anisotropic mechanical properties of the Pd_(31)T M are discussed, and threedimensional(3 D) surface contours and the planar projections on(001) and(110) planes are also investigated by the Young modulus.     

Prediction of scandium tetraboride from first-principles calculations:Crystal structures,phase stability,mechanical properties,and hardness

Using the evolutionary methodology for crystal structure prediction, we have predicted the orthorhombic Cmcm and Pnma phases for ScB_4. The earlier proposed Cr B_4~-, Fe B_4~-, Mn B_4~-, and Re P_4~- type structures for ScB_4 are excluded.It is first discovered that the Cmcm phase transforms to the Pnma phase at about 18 GPa. Moreover, both phases are dynamically and mechanically stable. The large bulk modulus, shear modulus, and Young's modulus of the two phases make it an optimistic low compressible material. Moreover, the strong covalent bonding nature of ScB_4 is confirmed by the ELF analysis. The strong covalent bonding contributes greatly to its stability.