Pressure Tuning in the Search for New and Improved Solid State Materials

Abstract

Pressure tuning is a potentially useful tool to increase the rate of discovery of solid-state materials with improved properties. The interaction parameters that determine the properties of a given material define a phase space, which can have one or more dimensions. A single solid-state compound can be represented by a single point in this phase space. The traditional approach to the search for new materials involves an exploration of phase space by sequential synthesis and characterization of new solid-state compounds. Because materials interaction parameters (e.g., orbital overlap, orbital energy, magnetic coupling, etc.) can be tuned with pressure, phase space can also be traversed with pressure, potentially allowing a property of interest to be optimized. The advantages of pressure tuning include the ability to tune rapidly and cleanly, typically without introducing disorder, phase separation, or other complicating factors. Demonstration of the existence of materials that exhibit improved properties at high pressure can provide insight into the structural and electronic parameters necessary for such improved properties to guide the search for such behavior at atmospheric pressure.

High-pressure neutron diffraction study of the quasi-one-dimensional cuprateSr2CuO3

“…1 Since interatomic distances may be varied in a controlled manner under applied pressure, pressure induced changes in physical properties may be correlated directly with changes in interatomic distances. In contrast, changes in physical properties arising from chemical substitution in solid state compounds are more difficult to correlate with changes in interatomic distances, due to changes in bond covalency, site disorder, and structural distortions.…”

Investigation of skutterudite MgyCo4Sb12: High pressure synthesis and thermoelectric properties

“…[31][32][33][34] Since pressure can initiate significant changes in reaction equilibrium, it provides a useful pathway in the search for new solid state materials with enhanced properties such as thermoelectric materials and intermetallic structural materials. 31 Previously, we reported the successful synthesis of lithium filled CoSb 3 , which is inaccessible under ambient pressure, by using high pressure synthesis (HPS) method.…”

Thermoelectric properties of SmxCo4Sb12 prepared by high pressure and high temperature

“…Recently, high-pressure technology as a potential tool to increase the rate of discovery of useful materials has spread all over the world [12][13][14][15]. Comparing to other preparation methods [2,4,16,17] for thermoelectric materials, the method of highpressure and high-temperature (HPHT) has many advantages, including the ability to tune rapidly and cleanly, restraining the disorder phase separation and other complicating factor during the preparation of materials [18].…”