We use a combination of x-ray diffraction, total scattering, and quantum mechanical calculations to determine the mechanism responsible for hydration-driven contraction in ZrW_{2}O_{8}. The inclusion of H_{2}O molecules within the ZrW_{2}O_{8} network drives the concerted formation of new W─O bonds to give one-dimensional (─W─O─)_{n} strings. The topology of the ZrW_{2}O_{8} network is such that there is no unique choice for the string trajectories: the same local changes in coordination can propagate with a large number of different periodicities. Consequently, ZrW_{2}O_{8}·H_{2}O is heavily disordered, with each configuration of strings forming a dense aperiodic "spaghetti." This new connectivity contracts the unit cell via large shifts in the Zr and W atom positions. Fluctuations of the undistorted parent structure towards this spaghetti phase emerge as the key negative thermal expansion (NTE) phonon modes in ZrW_{2}O_{8} itself. The large relative density of NTE phonon modes in ZrW_{2}O_{8} actually reflects the degeneracy of volume-contracting spaghetti excitations, itself a function of the particular topology of this remarkable material.

Spin-ices are frustrated magnets that support a particularly rich variety of emergent physics. Typically, it is the interplay of magnetic dipole interactions, spin anisotropy, and geometric frustration on the pyrochlore lattice that drives spin-ice formation. The relevant physics occurs at temperatures commensurate with the magnetic interaction strength, which for most systems is 1–5 K. Here, we show that non-magnetic cadmium cyanide, Cd(CN)2, exhibits analogous behaviour to magnetic spin-ices, but does so on a temperature scale that is nearly two orders of magnitude greater. The electric dipole moments of cyanide ions in Cd(CN)2 assume the role of magnetic pseudospins, with the difference in energy scale reflecting the increased strength of electric vs magnetic dipolar interactions. As a result, spin-ice physics influences the structural behaviour of Cd(CN)2 even at room temperature.

We report the nonaqueous synthesis of Cd(CN)2 by oxidation of cadmium metal with Hg(CN)2 in liquid ammonia. The reaction proceeds via an intermediate of composition Cd(NH3)2[Cd(CN)4], which converts to Cd(CN)2 on prolonged heating. Powder X-ray diffraction measurements allow us to determine the crystal structure of the previously-unreported Cd(NH3)2[Cd(CN)4], which we find to adopt a twofold interpenetrating PtS topology. We discuss the effect of partial oxidation on the Cd/Hg composition of this intermediate, as well as its implications for the reconstructive nature of the deammination process. Variable-temperature X-ray diffraction measurements allow us to characterise the anisotropic negative thermal expansion (NTE) behaviour of Cd(NH3)2[Cd(CN)4] together with the effect of Cd/Hg substitution; ab initio density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal a similarly anomalous mechanical response in the form of both negative linear compressibility (NLC) and negative Poisson's ratios.

Spin-ices are frustrated magnets that support a particularly rich variety of emergent physics. Typically, it is the interplay of magnetic dipole interactions, spin anisotropy, and geometric frustration on the pyrochlore lattice that drives spin-ice formation. The relevant physics occurs at temperatures commensurate with the magnetic interaction strength, which for most systems is 1-5 K. This low energy scale poses severe challenges for experimental studies of spinices and the practical exploitation of their unusual properties. Here, we show