The pressure effect on the crystallization of the Al89La6Ni5 amorphous alloy has been investigated by in situ high-pressure and high-temperature x-ray powder diffraction using synchrotron radiation. The amorphous alloy crystallizes in two steps in the pressure range studied (0–4 GPa). The first process, corresponding to simultaneous precipitation of fcc-Al crystals and the metastable bcc-(AlNi)11La3-like phase, is governed by a eutectic reaction. The second process corresponds to the transformation of a residual amorphous alloy into fcc-Al, Al11La3, Al3Ni, and as yet unidentified phase(s). The applied pressure strongly affects the crystallization processes of the amorphous alloy. Both temperatures first decrease with pressure in the pressure range of 0–1 GPa and then increase with pressure up to 4 GPa. The results are discussed with reference to competing processes between the thermodynamic potential barrier and the diffusion activation energy under pressure.

FePt/ZnO core/shell nanoparticles are successfully synthesized by seed‐mediated growth. TEM/HRTEM measurements (see figure) show a quasi‐epitaxial growth between the FePt core and the ZnO shell nanoparticles. The synthesized FePt/ZnO core/shell nanoparticles can exhibit a wide range of semiconducting, magnetic, and piezoelectric properties that can be used to fine‐tune the material's response to magnetic, electrical, optical, and mechanical stimuli, which has potential in data storage, optoelectronic, magneto‐electromechanical and biomedical applications.

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Structural characterization of the third polymorph of silicon nitride, synthesized under high-pressure and high-temperature conditions, has been obtained by Rietveld structure refinements of X-ray powder diffraction data recorded using synchrotron radiation. The material has a cubic spinel structure at 295 K with a space group Fd-3m, Z = 8, a unit cell of a = 7.7339±0.0001 Å, nitrogen position x = 0.2583±0.0001, and density ρ = 3.75±0.02 g cm −3 . The complete structural data obtained should offer a firm basis for understanding the properties of the novel material. One example is present for the Raman spectroscopy data of the material.