Crystal Field Splitting is Limiting the Stability and Strength of Ultra-incompressible Orthorhombic Transition Metal Tetraborides.

ABSTRACT: The lattice stability and mechanical strengths of the supposedly superhard transition metal tetraborides (TmB4, Tm = Cr, Mn and Fe) evoked recently much attention from the scientific community due to the potential applications of these materials, as well as because of general scientific interests. In the present study, we show that the surprising stabilization of these compounds from a high symmetry to a low symmetry structure is accomplished by an in-plane rotation of the boron network, which maximizes the in-plane hybridization by crystal field splitting between d orbitals of Tm and p orbitals of B. Studies of mechanical and electronic properties of TmB4 suggest that these tetraborides cannot be intrinsically superhard. The mechanical instability is facilitated by a unique in-plane or ou

SUBMITTER: Zhang RF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4791561 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature