Compositional dependence of physical properties of ternary Se–Te–Bi alloys

Abstract

Bulk samples of (Se100− x Bi x )90Te10 (x = 0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5 and 3 at%) system were prepared using the melt quenching technique. The amorphous nature of bulk samples was confirmed using X-ray diffraction. The compositional variation in physical properties, namely density ρ, molar volume V m, compactness δ, average coordination number m, average number of constraints N con, number of lone pair electrons L, bond energy, average heat of atomization H s, mean bond energy ⟨E⟩ and glass transition temperature T g of the system have been studied. The mean bond energy has been calculated using the chemical bond approach (CBA). The glass transition temperature was calculated using the Tichy–Ticha method and was found to increase with Bi content. The mean bond energy was found to be proportional to the glass transition temperature. Average coordination number, average number of constraints, mean bond energy and density increase, whereas the average heat of atomization decreases with increasing Bi content in Se–Te alloys. The energies of the various possible bonds have also been determined.