Formation and properties of some Nb-doped SrTiO3-based solid solutions

It is well known that SrTiO₃ is one of the widely used materials in the electronic ceramic industry. Donor-type dopants are often added in order to improve the electrical properties of SrTiO₃-based ceramics. In the present study, the formation and characteristics of undoped and Nb-doped SrTiO₃ were studied as a function of both the niobium dopant concentration and the Sr/Ti ratio (at the same Nb content). The formation mechanism of the mixed Sr(Ti,Nb)O₃ crystals was investigated by XRD and thermal analysis. The niobium solubility in the SrTiO₃ perovskite lattice was estimated by means of unit cell parameter data. The influence of Sr concentration on the microstructure of the ceramics obtained was investigated by SEM. Ceramic properties pointed out the influence of the dopant concentration and stoichiometry on the sintering behavior of these materials. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The disproportionation reaction phase transition,mechanical, and lattice dynamical properties of the lanthanum dihydrides under high pressure: A first principles study

The pressure-induced disproportionation reaction phase transition, mechanical, and dynamical properties of LaH₂ with fluorite structure under high pressure are investigated by performing first-principles calculations using the projector augmented wave (PAW) method. The phase transition of 2LaH₂ → LaH + LaH₃ obtained from the usual condition of equal enthalpies occurs at the pressure of 10.38 GPa for Perdew–Wang (PW91) functional and 6.05 GPa for Ceperly–Adler (CA) functional, respectively. The result shows that the PW91 functional calculations agree excellently with the experimental finding of 11 GPa of synchrotron radiation (SR) X-ray diffraction (XRD) of Machida et al. and 10 GPa of their PBE functional theoretical result. Three independent single-crystal elastic constants, polycrystalline bulk modulus, shear modulus, Young's modulus, elastic anisotropy, Poisson's ratio, the brittle/ductile characteristics and elastic wave velocities over different directions dependences on pressure are also successfully obtained. Especially, the phonon dispersion curves and corresponding phonon density of states of LaH₂ under high pressure are determined systematically using a linear-response approach to density functional perturbation theory (DFPT). Our results demonstrate that LaH₂ in fluorite phase can be stable energetically up to 10.38 GPa, stabilized mechanically up to 17.98 GPa, and stabilized dynamically up to 29 GPa, so it may remain a metastable phase above 10.38 GPa up to 29 GPa, these calculated results accord with the recent X-Ray diffraction experimental finding and theoretical predictions of Machida et al.     

M5(PO4)3F (M=Ca, Sr, Ba)中Sm3+的电荷迁移态及Sm3+和Eu3+的电荷迁移能量关系

采用高温固相反应合成了M_5-2xSm_xNa_x(PO₄)₃F(M=Ca,Sr,Ba)荧光体,研究了其在真空紫外-可见光范围的发光特性。发现在Ca₅(PO₄)₃F中Sm³⁺的电荷迁移带约在191 nm,在Sr₅(PO₄)₃F中约在199 nm,而在Ba₅(PO₄)₃F中约在204 nm,随着被取代碱土离子半径的增大电荷迁移能量逐渐减小。比较了M₅(PO₄)₃F (M=Ca,Sr,Ba)中Sm³⁺和Eu³⁺电荷迁移能量的关系。     

Nd-doped barium titanate ceramics with various Ti/Ba ratios prepared by sol-gel method

The Nd-doped BaTiO₃ nanocrystalline powders and ceramics with different Ti/Ba ratios were prepared by sol-gel method. Phases and microstructures of the Nd-doped BaTiO₃ based powders and ceramics were characterized by XRD, SEM and TEM methods. The results revealed that the powders synthesized by sol-gel method were nanometer scale (30 – 60 nm) and were mainly composed of cubic BaTiO₃ with a small amount of BaCO₃. After sintering at high temperature, both cubic BaTiO₃ and BaCO₃ were transformed into tetrahedron BaTiO₃ phase. The dielectric properties of the ceramics were also determined and the influence of Ti/Ba ratio on the dielectric properties was discussed. The T_c did not change with the variation of Ti/Ba ratio, while the ?_max increased firstly and then decreased. The excess TiO₂ is benefit for the modification of ceramics’ microstructure and dielectric properties.     

第一性原理计算钛酸铅A位掺杂对其负热膨胀性的影响

近年来,实验发现钛酸铅基材料具有负热膨胀性,且其热膨胀程度会受到掺杂元素的影响. 目前所研究的A位掺杂体系中,仅Cd原子掺杂能使钛酸铅负热膨胀性增强. 所以研究A位掺杂钛酸铅,比较Cd原子与其他原子在掺杂钛酸铅时化学键的异同,有助于深刻理解钛酸铅负热膨胀的本质. 本文利用第一性原理,分别优化了Sr、Ba、Cd掺杂钛酸铅的晶格常数,计算了它们的态密度和电荷密度. 结果表明Cd―O键的共价性强于Pb―O键,而Ba―O键和Sr―O键几乎呈离子性,Ba/Sr对Pb的替代削弱了化合物的共价性,降低了自发极化强度. 与实验测量的热膨胀系数对比可以发现,A位原子与氧原子之间的共价性增强,化合物负热膨胀程度升高;若A位原子与氧原子之间的共价性削弱,负热膨胀程度降低. 可见A位原子与氧原子之间的共价性影响了钛酸铅基化合物负热膨胀性.     

Structural study of perovskite-type fine particles by synchrotron radiation powder diffraction

The crystal structures of BaTiO₃ and PbTiO₃ fine particles have been investigated by powder diffraction using synchrotron radiation high energy X-rays. It is revealed that a BaTiO₃ fine particle essentially consists of tetragonal and cubic structure components at 300 K, whereas a PbTiO₃ fine particle consists of a tetragonal structure. Adopting a structure model for the BaTiO₃ particle that a cubic shell covers a tetragonal core, the thickness of cubic BaTiO₃ shell is estimated at almost constant irrespective of particle sizes. Successive phase transitions are detected in 100 nm particles of BaTiO₃ near the phase-transition temperatures of a bulk crystal. The changes in diffraction profiles are small, but they are apparent for a most up-to-date powder diffractometry. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Polymerization by alkaline earth metal compounds—II Polymerization of 2- and 4-vinylpyridine,styrene and butadiene by triphenylmethyl derivatives of calcium,strontium and barium

Investigations are reported on polymerizations of 2- and 4- vinylpyridine, styrene and butadiene by a series of related alkaline earth metal initiators, Ph₃CMX(THF)_n (M = Ca, Ba, X = Cl, n = 2; M = Ca, X = Br, n = 4; M = Sr, X = Cl, n = 4; M = Sr, X = Br, n = 5) in tetrahydrofuran (THF) or 1,2-dimethoxyethane (DME) at various temperatures and in the absence of solvent. The polymers have been examined by GPC and aspects of their microstructures determined by ¹³C and/or ¹H NMR spectroscopy and, for polybutadiene, i.r. spectroscopy. Poly-2-vinylpyridine produced by Ph₃CMX(THF)_n is rich in isotactic content; the isotacticity is higher for polymer formed in THF than DME solution, falls with change of initiator in the order M = Ca > Sr > Ba and, in DME, is greater when X = Br. The tacticities of poly-4-vinylpyridine and polystyrene are similar to those obtained from related organometallic initiators. The 1,4-content of polybutadiene decreases with initiator Ph₃CMX(THF)_n in the order M = Ba > Sr > Ca; the trans-1,4 structure generally predominates except when M = Ba from which cis-1,4 links are formed in comparable amounts.     

Mössbauer study on the CMR double perovskite AFe<Subscript>0.5</Subscript>Mo<Subscript>0.5</Subscript>O<Subscript>3 </Subscript>with A=(Ba,Sr) or (Sr,Ca): Chemical pressure effect

Summary The double perovskites, AFe_0.5Mo_0.5O₃with A=(Ba,Sr) or (Sr,Ca), were prepared by a sol-gel method, and the substitution effect at site A was studied by M?ssbauer spectrometry. In the M?ssbauer spectra of the double perovskite (Ba, Sr)Fe_0.5Mo_0.5O₃, the isomer shifts decreased fromδ=0.72 mm/s to δ=0.4 mm/s and the internal magnetic fields increased with the increase of the Sr content. The Ba-rich samples were shown to contain superparamagnetic components under the same preparation conditions. Better crystallinity and larger hyperfine fields were obtained when 5% of the Sr-content of SrFe_0.5Mo_0.5O₃was substituted by Ca as compared with substitution by Ba. Phonon density of states (DOS) of SrFe_0.5Mo_0.5O₃substituted with Ca or Ba were obtained by nuclear inelastic scattering. The peaks of phonon DOS were shifted, depending on chemical compression/expansion of the lattice. The chemical pressure effect could be observed in the M?ssbauer spectra and the phonon DOS spectra.     

Theoretical prediction of the structural,elastic, electronic,optical and thermal properties of the cubic perovskites CsXF3 (X = Ca,Sr and Hg) under pressure effect

Some physical properties of the cubic perovskites CsXF₃ (X = Ca, Sr and Hg) have been investigated using pseudopotential plane-wave method based on the density functional theory. The calculated lattice parameters within GGA and LDA agree reasonably with the available experimental data. The elastic constants and their pressure derivatives are predicted using the static finite strain technique. We derived the bulk and shear moduli, Young's modulus, Poisson's ratio and Lamé’s constants for ideal polycrystalline aggregates. The analysis of B/G ratio indicates that CsXF₃ (X = Ca, Sr and Hg) are ductile materials. The thermal effect on the volume, bulk modulus, heat capacity and Debye temperature was predicted.     

First-principles investigations on structural,electronic and elastic properties of BeSe under high pressure

The structural, electronic and elastic properties of BeSe in both B3 and B8 structures have been studied by first-principles calculations within the generalized gradient approximation (GGA). The calculated lattice parameters and bulk modulus of BeSe are in reasonable agreement with previous results. The predicted value of phase transition pressure from B3 to B8 is 50.24 GPa, which is well in line with the experimental data (56 ± 5 GPa). The calculation of the electronic band structure shows that the energy gap is indirect for B3 and B8 phases. Especially, the elastic constants of B8 BeSe under high pressure were studied for the first time. The bulk modulus, shear modulus, compressional and shear wave velocities of B8 BeSe evaluated from elastic constants as a function of pressure were investigated. In addition, Poisson's radio, elastic anisotropy and Debye temperature were analyzed successfully.     

Crystallization of textured PbTiO3 films deposited from gels

Sol-gel processed PbTiO₃ thin films have been deposited by spin coating onto different subtrates; Si[111], Si/Al, Si/SiO₂/Cr/Pt, MgO[100], SrTiO₃[100] and sapphire. Interactions between the substrate and PbTiO₃ films after heat treatment have been studied by X-ray diffraction and Rutherford Back Scattering. When deposited onto sapphire and Si[111], PbTiO₃ films exhibit a preferred orientation with (101) perpendicular to the substrate. These films become oriented along (100) onto MgO and (001) onto SrTiO₃[100] substrates. A strong channelling effect is observed by the RBS technique when the film is oriented along the c axis on SrTiO₃[100] suggesting that these films are epitaxially grown. The diffusion of metal atoms during the thermal treatment gives rise to the formation of lead silicate on Si[111] substrates. As a result a pyrochlore phase is formed. Lead titanate films on Si/SiO₂/Cr/Pt and Si/Al substrates are polycrystalline and do not exhibit any texture.     

Solvent Extraction of Alkaline Earths with 1-Phenyl -3-Methyl 4 Stearoylpyrazol - 5 - One and Topo

Abstract

The synergic extraction of Ca, Sr, and Ba ions from aqueous solutions into cyclohexane or benzene containing 1- pheny 1 - 3 - methyl - 4 - stearoylpyrazol - 5 - one (HPMSP) and TOPO has been studied. Quantitative extraction (log D>2) was attained at pH>5.4 for Ca, pH>6.5 for Sr, and pH>7.3 for Ba when cyclohexane containing 0.05 M HPMSP and 0.01 M TOPO was used, and the corresoponding values for benzene were 6.5, 7.8, and 8.4. Extracted species were M(PMSP)₂(TOPO)₃ (M=Ca, Sr, Ba) for cyclohexane and Ca(PMSP)₂(TOPO)₃ and Sr (or Ba) (PMSP)₂(TOPO)₂ for benzene.     

Powderless processing of ceramics: Thin-layer electroceramics

A review is made of progress on the sol-gel processing of dense insulating electroceramics by polymeric condensation routes. Up until the past ten years, powders and porous coatings were principally made for optical and conductive applications. Much effort was expended on silica (SiO₂) and silicate-based systems. Recently, these approaches have been extended to non-silicate systems [1]. In this paper information is presented for the powderless processing of selected electroceramics in thin-layer form. Materials include PbTiO₃, BaTiO₃, Ba_1–x Pb _x TiO₃, PbZrO₃, Pb(Zr_1–y Ti _y )O₃ and (Pb_1–x La _x )(Zr_1–y Ti _y )O₃ which find applications in ceramic capacitors, piezoelectric transducers and electrooptic modulators. The approach is to avoid powders, and the attendent problems of powder handling, flow, packing, etc., and make use of polymerization condensation reactions to form extended networks with chemical linkage. Data are reported for the synthesis and low temperature processing routes for amorphous and polycrystalline ceramics.     

Effect of MWO<Subscript>4</Subscript> (M = Ca,Sr, Ba) dispersion on the interfacial processes in (+/−)WO<Subscript>3</Subscript>|MWO<Subscript>4</Subscript>|WO<Subscript>3</Subscript>(−/+) cells and transport properties of metacomposite phases

We compare data on the reciprocal electrosurface transfer (EST) of WO₃ and MWO₄ components through WO₃|MWO₄ eutectic heterointerfaces using MWO₄ (M = Ca, Sr, Ba) samples prepared by standard ceramic technology (CER) and nitrate-organic technology (N/O); these samples considerably differ in both the grain size of precursor powders and the grain size of sintered ceramics. When an electric field is applied, the interpenetration of WO₃ and MWO₄ components occurs though WO₃|MWO₄ (M = Ca, Sr, Ba) heterointerfaces. The general ⁽⁻⁾WO₃ ↔ MWO₄ ⁽⁺⁾ intermigration pattern in the cells is not influenced by tungstate preparation technology. However, interpenetration rates are far greater for MW₄^N/O. The transport properties of {MWO₄ · xWO₃} two-phase eutectic metacomposites manufactured by both technologies were studied. Tungstate and composite manufacturing technologies have no radical influence on the electric properties (overall and partial conductivity, transference numbers) of the samples, only changing conductivity versus concentration relationships. Our data well fit the model of formation of a nonautonomous electrolytic interphase.     

Mechanochemical Synthesis and Characterization of Alkaline Earth Metal Terephthalates: M(C8H4O4)·nH2O (M = Ca,Sr, Ba)

The mechanochemical synthesis offers an easy access to obtain alkaline earth metal terephthalates M(C₈H₄O₄) · nH₂O (M = Ca, Sr, Ba). In the presented study we describe for the first time the mechanochemical synthesis of powders of Ca(C₈H₄O₄) · 3H₂O, Ca(C₈H₄O₄), Sr(C₈H₄O₄) · H₂O, and Ba(C₈H₄O₄), which so far were only synthesized as single crystals from aqueous solutions or by reactions in an autoclave. Furthermore, a new hydrate Ba(C₈H₄O₄) · 2(1.5)H₂O, not described so far in the literature, was prepared. All compounds were characterized by X‐ray powder diffraction, thermal analysis, elemental analysis, FT‐IR, and MAS NMR spectroscopic measurements.     

The influence of high pressure on the structural stability,Vickers hardness and mechanical properties of Re and Ru dodecaborides

We apply the first-principles approach to study the structural stability, Vickers hardness, and elastic modulus of ReB₁₂ and RuB₁₂. In particular, we further investigate the influence of high pressure on the structural stability and mechanical properties of ReB₁₂ and RuB₁₂. The calculated results show that ReB₁₂ and RuB₁₂ are thermodynamic stability under high pressure. Here, ReB₁₂ is more thermodynamic stability than that of the RuB₁₂. The calculated Vickers hardness of ReB₁₂ and RuB₁₂ is 16.25 and 16.55 GPa, respectively. It is found that the calculated elastic constants and elastic modulus of ReB₁₂ and RuB₁₂ increase with increasing pressure. In particular, the calculated elastic constants and elastic modulus of ReB₁₂ are larger than that of the RuB₁₂. The calculated electronic structure shows that the high hardness and elastic modulus of ReB₁₂ and RuB₁₂ are attributed to the 3D network B-B covalent bonds.     

A simple approach to porous low-temperature-sintering BaTiO3

Porous tetragonal BaTiO 3 ceramic was successfully prepared by a combination of hydrothermal and low-temperature-sintering method.The hollow TiO2@BaCO 3 as the sintering precursor was synthesized via a simple hydrothermal method,and then porous BaTiO 3 was generated by calcining the hollow TiO2@BaCO 3 precursor at 900 ℃ without additive.The hollow TiO2@BaCO 3 structure plays two important roles in the preparing of the porous BaTiO 3 ceramic.First,the TiO2@BaCO 3 hollow structure provides high surface areas and increases the contact points between BaCO 3 and TiO2,which can reduce the sintering temperature of the BaTiO 3 ceramic.Second,the cavity of the ordered arranged TiO2@BaCO 3 hollow sphere shows important influence on the porous structure,and the pore size of the as-prepared porous BaTiO 3 ceramic can be tuned from several nanometers to hundreds nanomters by changing the sintering temperature.The formation mechanism of the porous BaTiO 3 ceramic was proposed.     

Polymerization by alkaline earth metal compounds—I. Studies on the polymerization of methylmethacrylate by triphenylmethyl metal derivatives and related compounds of calcium,strontium and barium

A series of related organo-alkaline earth metal compounds of formula (Ph₃C)MX(THF)_η, (M = Ca, Sr, Ba; X = Cl: M = Ca, Sr; X = Br: M = Ba; X = CPh₃), has been isolated and characterized using analytical and spectroscopic techniques. The polymerization of methylmethacrylate (MMA) has been studied using these organometallic compounds as initiators. Investigations of the tacticity variations of polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) produced in 1,2-dimethoxyethane or tetrahydrofuran (THF) at 210 K have shown that the syndiotacticity is higher in the former solvent, decreases with the following changes in initiator composition: Ca > Sr ? Ba; Cl > Br; in THF, it is dependent on the monomer concentration. The molecular weight distributions of the PMMA samples are broad and have distinct bi- or poly-modal features. The polymerization process appears to be anionic in nature but the evidence suggests that more than one type of propagation occurs and mechanistic aspects are discussed. Polymerization of bulk MMA by these same initiators is also reported. The initiators RMX(THF)_n (M = Sr, R = Me, n = 3 or R = Et, n = 2) and (C₃H₅)SrBr(THF)₂ are shown to be inefficient for polymerization of MMA. The glass transition temperatures of a range of PMMA samples of differing tacticity are presented and discussed.     

A study of magnetic interactions in M2EuRuO6 (M = Ca,Sr, Ba) by 151Eu Mössbauer spectroscopy

The series of compounds M₂EuRuO₆ (M = Ca, Sr, Ba) has been studied by ¹⁵¹Eu Mössbauer spectroscopy. X-Ray data show them to be structurally derived from the ABO₃ perovskite lattice, but only the Ba compound gives positive evidence to suggest ordering of the $\text{Eu}{}^{\mathrm{3+}}\text{Ru}{}^{\mathrm{5+}}$ cations. The ¹⁵¹Eu resonance shows magnetic hyperfine splitting at 4.2 K. The Ru⁵⁺OEu³⁺ORu⁵⁺ exchange takes place by admixture of low-lying excited states into the diamagnetic J = 0 ground-state of the Eu³⁺. The Curie temperatures are approximately 18, 31, and 42 K for the Ca, Sr, and Ba compounds. Detailed analysis shows that substantial disorder of cations occurs, being quite large for Ca, <8% for Sr, and <5% for Ba. However, it appears that considerable canting of the Ru⁵⁺ spins takes place in the Ba compound immediately below the Curie temperature as a result of the disorder and low anisotropy at the Ru sites. This effect is much reduced in the more distorted Sr compound.     

Structural,elastic, electronic and optical properties of the newly synthesized monoclinic Zintl phase BaIn2P2

The present study explores the structural, elastic, electronic and optical properties of the newly synthesized monoclinic Zintl phase BaIn₂P₂ using a pseudopotential plane-wave method in the framework of density functional theory within the generalized gradient approximation. The calculated lattice constants and internal coordinates are in very good agreement with the experimental findings. Independent single-crystal elastic constants as well as numerical estimations of the bulk modulus, the shear modulus, Young's modulus, Poisson's ratio, Pugh's indicator of brittle/ductile behaviour and the Debye temperature for the corresponding polycrystalline phase were obtained. The elastic anisotropy of BaIn₂P₂ was investigated using three different indexes. The calculated electronic band structure and the total and site-projected l-decomposed densities of states reveal that this compound is a direct narrow-band-gap semiconductor. Under the influence of hydrostatic pressure, the direct D–D band gap transforms into an indirect B-D band gap at 4.08 GPa, then into a B–Γ band gap at 10.56 GPa. Optical macroscopic constants, namely, the dielectric function, refractive index, extinction coefficient, reflectivity coefficient, absorption coefficient and energy-loss function, for polarized incident radiation along the [100], [010] and [001] directions were investigated.