On the Chemistry and Physical Properties of Flux and Floating Zone Grown SmB6 Single Crystals.

ABSTRACT: Recent theoretical and experimental findings suggest the long-known but not well understood low temperature resistance plateau of SmB6 may originate from protected surface states arising from a topologically non-trivial bulk band structure having strong Kondo hybridization. Yet others have ascribed this feature to impurities, vacancies, and surface reconstructions. Given the typical methods used to prepare SmB6 single crystals, flux and floating-zone procedures, such ascriptions should not be taken lightly. We demonstrate how compositional variations and/or observable amounts of impurities in SmB6 crystals grown using both procedures affect the physical properties. From X-ray diffraction, neutron diffraction, and X-ray computed tomography experiments we observe that natural isotope contain

SUBMITTER: Phelan WA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4759532 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature