First-Principles Study of Structural,Elastic and Electronic Properties of OsSi

First-principles study of structural, elastic, and electronic properties of the B20 structure OsSi has been reported using the plane-wave pseudopotential density functional theory method. The calculated equilibrium lattice and elastic constants are in good agreement with the experimental data and other theoretical results. The dependence of the elastic constants, the aggregate elastic modulus, the deviation from the Cauchy relation, the elastic wavevelocities in different directions and the elastic anisotropy on pressure have been obtained and discussed. This could be the first quantitative theoretical prediction of the elastic properties under high pressure of OsSi compound. Moreover, the electronic structure calculations show that OsSi is a degenerate semiconductor with the gap value of 0.68 eV, which is higher than theexperimental value of 0.26 eV. The analysis of the PDOS reveals that hybridization between Os d and Si p states indicates a certain covalency of the Os-Si bonds.     

Molybdenum Carbide:A Stable Topological Semimetal with Line Nodes and Triply Degenerate Points

We propose that the hexagonal crystal form of MoC is a stable and new type of topological semimetal. It hosts an exotic Fermi surface consisting of two concentric nodal rings in the presence of spin-orbit coupling, and possesses four pairs of triply degenerate points(TDPs) in the vicinity of the Fermi energy. The coexistence of the nodal ring Fermi surface and TDPs in MoC leads to extraordinary properties such as distinguishable drumhead surface states and manipulatable new fermions, which make MoC a fertile platform for in-depth understanding of topological phenomena and a potential candidate material for topological electronic devices.     

尿素夹层二硫化钛化合物的合成及其热、电输运性质研究(英文)

我们成功的制备出了含不同成分尿素的夹层化合物(NH2CONH2)xTiS2,并研究了它们在低温(5～310K)下的热、电输运性质.夹层后晶格常数、热、电输运行为的变化也证实了尿素分子成功的夹层到TiS2的范德华尔斯层间.研究结果表明:尿素分子的夹层成功的降低了材料的热导率,特别是在浓度为12.5mmol/L尿素的苯溶液中合成的样品的热导率大约1.5Wm-1 K-1(仅为纯TiS2的50%),而且尿素分子的夹层使得材料在低温下的导电行为从金属性转变为半导体性.     

Comment on: Ab initio calculations of B<Subscript>2</Subscript> type RHg (R = Ce,Pr,Eu and Gd) intermetallic compounds

In a recent article by Devi et al. [Eur. Phys. J. B 87, 268 (2014)], thestructural, electronic, elastic and some thermal properties of B2 type RHg(R = Ce, Pr, Eu and Gd)intermetallic compounds have been studied by ab initio calculations. After the study oftheir article I found that there are some mistakes in predicted crystal density,longitudinal, transverse and average elastic wave velocities, and Debye temperature data.The crystal density has been found multiplied per 4. Also the longitudinal, transverse andaverage elastic wave velocities and Debye temperature are different from my reexaminedvalues (all results represented by Devi et al. have been found divided per 2). Althoughthese small mistakes do not influence their conclusion, it is better to correct them. Inthe present work, I reexamined all data again by using the right formulas, based on thelattice parameters and the elastic constants obtained in the work of Devi et al.     

Measurement of Superconductivity and Edge States in Topological Superconductor Candidate TaSe_3

Topological superconductors(TSCs) have been widely investigated in recent years due to their novel physics and ability to host Majorana fermions(MFs) which are key to topological quantum computation. Despite the great interest, only a few compounds have been proposed as candidates of intrinsic TSCs, such as ironbased superconductor FeSe_(0.55)Te_(0.45) and 2 M-WS_2. Among them, quasi-one-dimensional superconductor TaSe_3 possesses fascinating properties such as its simple stoichiometry, layered nature and chemical stability. Here,using scanning tunneling microscope/spectroscopy(STM/STS), we systematically investigate the topography and electronic structure of TaSe_3. Our STM/STS measurement reveals large atomically flat, defect-free surfaces suitable for the search of MF; electronic density of states consistent with our angle-resolved photoemission result and band-structure calculations, and a uniform superconducting gap with a typical size of ~0.25 meV. Remarkably,additional edge states are observed in the vicinity of the terrace edge, suggesting they may have a topological origin. Our result proves the coexistence of superconductivity and topological electronic structure in TaSe_3,making it an intriguing platform to investigate topological superconductivity.     

Investigations of structural,electronic, mechanical and lattice dynamic properties of TiRu3 and TiOs3 compounds

Ab initio calculations of structural, electronic, elastic, and phonon properties of TiRu₃ and TiOs₃ compounds have been studied using the density functional theory (DFT) within the generalized gradient approximation (GGA). The basic structural properties such as lattice constants, bulk modulus and pressure derivative of bulk modulus of these compounds were studied and compared with the previous theoretical data. Electronic band structures and partial densities of states for TiRu₃ and TiOs₃ compounds were computed and analyzed. The electronic band calculations showed that the TiRu₃ and TiOs₃ compounds have metallic nature. Phonon spectra, their total and projected densities of states for these compounds were computed by using a linear-response method in the framework of the density functional perturbation theory. The specific heat capacities at a constant volume C_V and Debye temperature of TiCr₃ and TiOs₃ compounds were also calculated and discussed.     

First-principle investigation on the thermodynamics of X_2N_2O(X = C,Si, Ge) compounds

The structures under different pressures, elastic properties, electronic structures and lattice vibrations of the X_2N_2O(X = C, Si, Ge) compounds are investigated by using the first-principle method. Based on the phonon density of state,the thermodynamic properties of the present compounds are studied under different pressures and at different temperatures. The structural parameters including the bond lengths and bond angles are in agreement with available experimental measurements and theoretical calculations. We employ the elastic theory to calculate the nine independent elastic constants(C_(ij)) and the derived elastic moduli(B, G, E, v). Results indicate that these X_2N_2O(X = C, Si, Ge) compounds are mechanically stable and show the brittle behaviors. The electronic properties of the present compounds are analyzed by using the band structure and density of states. The phonon dispersion calculations imply that the present compounds are dynamically stable. Based on the quasi-harmonic approximation, the calculations of the specific heat indicate that the temperature in a range of 0 K–1500 K and pressure in a range of 0 GPa–40 GPa have a large effect on the thermal quantities of Ge_2N_2O,compared with on those of the C_2N_2O and Si_2N_2O compounds.     

Theoretical study of B2 type technetium AB (A=Tc,B=Ti,V, Nb and Ta) intermetallic compounds

The structural, electronic, elastic and thermal properties of the cubic AB type (A=Tc, B=Ti, V, Nb and Ta) technetium intermetallic compounds have been studied using the full potential linearized augmented plane wave (FP-LAPW) method within the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) and local density approximation (LDA) used for the exchange-correlation potential. The calculated lattice parameters agree well with the experimental results. The calculated electronic properties reveal that these compounds are metallic in nature with partial ionic bonding. The elastic constants obey the stability criteria for cubic system. Ductility for these compounds has been analyzed using the Pugh's rule and Cauchy's pressure revealing ductile in nature of all the compounds. Bonding nature is discussed using Fermi surface, band structure and charge density difference plots.     

First-principles studies on mechanical,electronic, magnetic and optical properties of new multiferroic members BiLaFe2O6 and Bi2FeMnO6: Originated from BiFeO3

Recently multiferroic materials have attract great interest for the applications on memorial, spintronic and magneto-electric sensor devices for their spontaneous magneto-electric coupling properties. Research and development of the various kinds of multiferroics are indispensable factor for a new generation multifunctional materials. In this research, mechanical, electronic, magnetic and nonlinear optical properties of La modified BiLaFe₂O₆ (BLFO) and Mn modified Bi₂FeMnO₆ (BFMO) were studied as new members of multiferroic BiFeO₃ (BFO) series by first-principles calculations, and compared with the pure BFO to discover the optimized properties. Our results show that BLFO and BFMO have good mechanical stability as revealed by elastic constants that satisfy the stability criteria. All these compounds exhibit anisotropic and ductile nature. The enhanced properties by La and Mn substitution, such as increased hardness, improved magnetism, decreased band gap and comparable second harmonic generation responses reveal that the new multiferroic members of BLFO and BFMO would get wider application than their BFO counterpart. Our study is expected to providing an appropriate mechanical reference data as guidance for engineering of high efficiency multifunctional devices with the BFO series.     

Mechanical stability and thermodynamic properties of OsC from first-principles calculations

The elastic and thermodynamic characteristics of OsC crystal have been predicted through a method of density functional theory within the generalized gradient approximation (GGA). Compared with WC-type OsC, NaCl-type OsC is not only energy unfavorable but also mechanics unstable. The five independent elastic constants (C_ij), bulk modulus (B₀), the dependence of bulk modulus on temperature and pressure as well as the thermal expansion coefficient (α_V) at various temperatures for WC-type OsC are discussed. According to our calculations, WC-type OsC should be an ultra-incompressible material with high bulk modulus about 381 GPa. In addition, the bulk modulus will increase with increasing pressure while decrease with increasing temperature. The researches on the thermal expansion coefficient indicate that there will be a knee point during the process of thermal expansion coefficient variation versus increasing temperature. Our results may provide useful information for theoretical and experimental investigation of OsC.     

Experimental investigation and ab initio calculation of the properties of Sc-, in-doped bismuth titanates with the pyrochlore type structure

Using ab initio calculations, the data have been obtained on the structural, electronic, and optical properties of bismuth titanates with the pyrochlore type structure and compounds with the substitution of scandium or indium atoms for bismuth and titanium atoms. The results of the theoretical calculations agree with the experimentally obtained structural and optical characteristics of the synthesized compounds doped with scandium or indium. It has been shown that the substitution of scandium or indium atoms for bismuth atoms in the pyrochlore structure is energetically favorable. The energies corresponding to the direct and indirect electronic transitions in scandium- and indium-doped bismuth titanates have been determined based on the optical spectroscopy data obtained for the studied samples. These energies are in agreement with the theoretically calculated values.     

Structural, elastic and electronic properties of transition metal carbides TMC (TM=Ti, Zr, Hf and Ta) from first-principles calculations

The structural, elastic and electronic properties of TiC, ZrC, HfC and TaC have been investigated by first-principles calculations using the plane-wave pseudopotential method. Different exchange-correlation functionals regarding the local density approximation and the PBE, RPBE and PW91 forms of generalized gradient approximation are taken into account. The NaCl-type cubic structures of TMC (TM=Ti, Zr, Hf and Ta) are optimized and confirmed to be mechanically stable. The elastic properties such as the elastic constants, bulk modulus, shear modulus, Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio of TMC are investigated, and the performances of LDA and GGA are discussed. The electronic density of state, electron charge density and Mulliken population analysis have been explored to discuss the electronic properties and bonding behaviors of TMC. The present calculation results compare satisfactorily with the experimental data and previous theoretical calculations.     

Stability,elasticity and electronic structures of Co-Zr binary intermetallic compounds

ABSTRACT

The structural properties, enthalpies of formation and entropic temperatures of five stable Co-Zr intermetallics were systematically investigated by first-principles calculations. The calculated enthalpy of formation was used to measure the phase stability of the Co-Zr intermetallic compounds, and the results reveal that CoZr has the highest phase stability among these Co-Zr compounds. Considering the change of temperature, the entropic temperature T_S was used to illustrate the high-temperature stability of the Co-Zr intermetallic compounds. Additionally, the elastic constants, anisotropy indexes and Debye temperatures have been calculated. According to the calculated anisotropy indexes, CoZr₂ has the highest elastic anisotropy among the Co-Zr binary compounds. Furthermore, the bonding characteristics of these compounds have also been investigated by calculating the electronic structures.     

Quantum anomalous Hall effect and related topological electronic states

Over a long period of exploration, the successful observation of quantized version of anomalous Hall effect (AHE) in thin film of magnetically doped topological insulator (TI) completed a quantum Hall trio—quantum Hall effect (QHE), quantum spin Hall effect (QSHE), and quantum anomalous Hall effect (QAHE). On the theoretical front, it was understood that the intrinsic AHE is related to Berry curvature and U(1) gauge field in momentum space. This understanding established connection between the QAHE and the topological properties of electronic structures characterized by the Chern number. With the time-reversal symmetry (TRS) broken by magnetization, a QAHE system carries dissipationless charge current at edges, similar to the QHE where an external magnetic field is necessary. The QAHE and corresponding Chern insulators are also closely related to other topological electronic states, such as TIs and topological semimetals, which have been extensively studied recently and have been known to exist in various compounds. First-principles electronic structure calculations play important roles not only for the understanding of fundamental physics in this field, but also towards the prediction and realization of realistic compounds. In this article, a theoretical review on the Berry phase mechanism and related topological electronic states in terms of various topological invariants will be given with focus on the QAHE and Chern insulators. We will introduce the Wilson loop method and the band inversion mechanism for the selection and design of topological materials, and discuss the predictive power of first-principles calculations. Finally, remaining issues, challenges and possible applications for future investigations in the field will be addressed.     

Electronic structure calculations of lead chalcogenides PbS, PbSe, PbTe

In this work, we have extended our study of the mechanical properties and the electronic structure of PbTe to include other Pb chalcogenide compounds (PbSe, PbS). The calculations were performed self-consistently using the scalar-relativistic full-potential linearized augmented plane wave method. Both the local density approximation (LDA) and the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) to density-functional theory were applied.The equilibrium lattice constants and the bulk modulus of a number of structures (NaCl, CsCl, ZnS) were calculated as well as the elastic constants for the structures (NaCl, CsCl). The NaCl structure is found to be the most stable one among all the three phases considered. We have found that the GGA predicts the elastic constants in good agreement with experimental data.Both the LDA and GGA were successful in predicting the location of the band gap at the L point of the Brillouin zone but they are inconclusive regarding the value of the band-gap width. To resolve the issue of the gap, we performed Slater-Koster (SK) tight-binding calculations, including the spin-orbit coupling in the SK Hamiltonian. The SK results that are based on our GGA calculations give the best agreement with experiment.Results are reported for the pressure dependence of the energy gap of these compounds in the NaCl structure. The pressure variation of the energy gap indicates a transition to a metallic phase at high pressure. Band structure calculations in the CsCl structure show a metallic state for all compounds. The electronic band structure in the ZnS phase shows an indirect band gap at the W and X point of the Brillouin zone.     

金红石型TiO_2中四种点缺陷态研究

利用第一性原理计算方法研究了金红石型TiO_2中四种缺陷的电子态.这四种缺陷包括氧空位(O_v)、钛空位(Ti_V)、钛间隙(Ti_S)以及氧空位O_v与钛间隙态Ti_S共存态.氧空位的存在导致禁带内施主缺陷能级较浅,而深施主能级与Ti间隙态有关.预测了氧空位更倾向于与钛间隙结合,主要通过钛间隙态的3d电子部分转移到近邻近氧空位的部分形成O_V-Ti_S对缺陷.具有O_v、Ti_S或O_V-Ti_S缺陷的体系都出现间隙态,促进体系出现红外吸收.     

Structural,elastic, electronic and optical properties of the cubic perovskites CaXO3 (X=Hf and Sn)

The structural, elastic, electronic and optical properties of CaXO₃ compounds with the cubic perovskites structure have been investigated, by employing a first principles method, using the plane wave pseudo potential calculations (PP-PW), based on the density functional theory (DFT), within the local density approximation (LDA). The elastic constants and their pressure dependence are calculated using the static finite strain technique. We derived the bulk, shear and Young’s moduli for ideal monocrystalline and for polycrystalline CaXO₃ aggregates which we have classified as ductile in nature. Band structures reveal that these compounds are indirect energy band gap (R-G) semiconductors; the analysis of the site and momentum projected densities, valence charge density bond length, bond population and Milliken charges, shows that bonding is of covalent–ionic nature. We have found that the elastic constants C₁₁, C₁₂, C₄₄ are in good correlation with the bonding properties. The optical constants, including the dielectric function, optical reflectivity, refractive index and electron energy loss, are calculated for radiation up to 20 eV.     

Structural,elastic, electronic,optical and thermoelectric properties of the Zintl-phase Ae3AlAs3 (Ae = Sr,Ba)

First-principles calculations were performed to investigate the structural, elastic, electronic, optical and thermoelectric properties of the Zintl-phase Ae₃AlAs₃ (Ae = Sr, Ba) using two complementary approaches based on density functional theory. The pseudopotential plane-wave method was used to explore the structural and elastic properties whereas the full-potential linearised augmented plane wave approach was used to study the structural, electronic, optical and thermoelectric properties. The calculated structural parameters are in good consistency with the corresponding measured ones. The single-crystal and polycrystalline elastic constants and related properties were examined in details. The electronic properties, including energy band dispersions, density of states and charge-carrier effective masses, were computed using Tran-Blaha modified Becke-Johnson functional for the exchange-correlation potential. It is found that both studied compounds are direct band gap semiconductors. Frequency-dependence of the linear optical functions were predicted for a wide photon energy range up to 15 eV. Charge carrier concentration and temperature dependences of the basic parameters of the thermoelectric properties were explored using the semi-classical Boltzmann transport model. Our calculations unveil that the studied compounds are characterised by a high thermopower for both carriers, especially the p-type conduction is more favourable.     

Ab initio studies of the structural,elastic, electronic and thermal properties of NiTi2 intermetallic

First principles calculations were performed in the framework of the density functional theory (DFT) using the Full Potential–Linear Augment Plane Wave method (FP–LAPW) within the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) to predict the structural, electronic, elastic and thermal properties of NiTi₂ intermetallic compound. By using the Wien2k all-electron code, calculations of the ground state and electronic properties such as lattice constants, bulk modulus, presure derivative of bulk modulus, total energies and density of states were also included. The elastic constants and mechanical properties such as Poisson’s ratio, Young’s modulus and shear modulus are estimated from the calculated elastic constants of the single crystal. Through the quasi-harmonic Debye model, the preasure and temperature dependences of the linear expansion coefficient, bulk modulus and heat capacity have been investigated. Finally, the Debye temperature has been estimated from the average sound velocity according to the predicted polycrystal bulk properties and from the single crystal elastic constants.     

Stability,elastic anisotropy,and electronic properties of Ca_2C_3

The systematic investigations of the mechanical, elastic, and electronic properties, and stability of the newly synthesized monoclinic C2/m-Ca_2C_3 are performed, based on the first-principles calculations. Ca_2C_3 is found to be mechanically and dynamically stable only from 0 GPa to 24 GPa. The elastic anisotropy studies show that Ca_2C_3 exhibits the elastic anisotropy increasing with the augment of pressure. Furthermore, using the HSE06 hybrid functional, the electronic properties of Ca_2C_3 under pressure are calculated. The structure can be regarded as a quasi-direct band gap semiconductor, and the pressure-induced direct-indirect band gap transition is studied in detail.