Chemical Bonding and Pressure‐Induced Change of the Electron Configuration of Ytterbium in β‐YbAgGa2 |
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Authors: | Ulrich Schwarz Marcus Schmidt Roman Gumeniuk Walter Schnelle Michael Hanfland Konstantin Klementiev Yuri Grin |
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Abstract: | Single‐phase polycrystalline samples of the intermetallic compound β‐YbAgGa2 were synthesized by inductive heating and subsequent annealing for eight weeks at 670 K. Magnetic properties were characterized by susceptibility measurements and indicated intermediate valence of ytterbium at ambient pressure. Angle‐dispersive X‐ray powder diffraction data of orthorhombic β‐YbAgGa2 indicate stability of the phase in the investigated pressure range from 0.1 MPa (ambient pressure) to 19 GPa. The pressure‐induced volume decrease is accompanied by an increase of the effective valence from 2.17 at ambient conditions to 2.71 at 16 GPa as evaluated by X‐ray absorption spectroscopy at the Yb LIII threshold. Analysis of the chemical bonding in β‐YbAgGa2 by integrating the electron density of the polyanion in basins as defined by the electron localization function results in an electron count Yb2.7+(Ag0.2—)(Ga1(3b)1.0—)(Ga2(4b)1.5—)]. This finding is close to the expected values calculated by means of the Zintl rules and fits well the results of magnetic susceptibility measurements and XAS investigations. |
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Keywords: | β ‐YbAgGa2 Chemical bonding High‐pressure Electronic configuration Electron localization function (ELF) |
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