Experimental Observation of the High Pressure Induced Substitutional Solid Solution and Phase Transformation in Sb2S3

Yingying Wang,Guangtian Zou,Jian Zhang,Yue Li,Guangtao Liu,Yanming Ma,Yanmei Ma,Quan Li,Jianyun Wang

doi:10.1038/s41598-018-33035-4

Yingying Wang, Guangtian Zou + Show 7 more

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https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-33035-4

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Abstract

The substitutional solid solutions composed of group VA-VIA nonmetallic elements has attracted considerable scientific interest since they provide a pressure-induced route to search for novel types of solid solutions with potential applications. Yet, the pressure-induced solid solution phase is unprecedented in the sulfide family. In this paper, the structural behavior of antimony trisulfide, Sb2S3, has been investigated in order to testify whether or not it can also be driven into the substitutional solid solution phase by high pressures. The experiments were carried out by using a diamond anvil cell and angle dispersive synchrotron X-ray diffraction up to 50.2 GPa at room temperature. The experimental results indicate that Sb2S3 undergoes a series of phase transitions at 5.0, 12.6, 16.9, 21.3, and 28.2 GPa, and develops ultimately into an Sb-S substitutional solid solution, which adopts a body-centered cubic disordered structure. In this structure, the Sb and S atoms are distributed randomly on the bcc lattice sites with space group Im-3m. The structural behavior of Sb2S3 is tentatively assigned by comparison within the A2B3 (A = Sb, Bi; B = Se, Te, S) series under high pressures.

Highlights

The interests for the high pressure studies on these group VA sulfides A2S3 (A = Sb and Bi) arises from the expectations that structural modulations and properties enhancements may be achieved by applying external pressure
In order to study the compression behaviors of Sb2S3 under high pressures and to clarify the high-pressure phase transition of Sb2S3, we have carried out a comprehensive investigation of Sb2S3 at room temperature by synchrotron XRD using a diamond anvil cell (DAC) up to 50.2 GPa
All the reflections obtained at 0.7 GPa can be indexed by space group Pnma with lattice parameters a = 11.303, b = 3.814, and c = 11.196 Å, via LeBail refinement using the GSAS software, which is in close agreement with earlier reported values[22]

Summary

OPEN Experimental Observation of the High Pressure Induced

Substitutional Solid Solution and Received: 23 March 2018 Accepted: 19 September 2018 Published: xx xx xxxx. The experimental results indicate that Sb2S3 undergoes a series of phase transitions at 5.0, 12.6, 16.9, 21.3, and 28.2 GPa, and develops into an Sb-S substitutional solid solution, which adopts a body-centered cubic disordered structure In this structure, the Sb and S atoms are distributed randomly on the bcc lattice sites with space group Im-3m. In order to study the compression behaviors of Sb2S3 under high pressures and to clarify the high-pressure phase transition of Sb2S3, we have carried out a comprehensive investigation of Sb2S3 at room temperature by synchrotron XRD using a diamond anvil cell (DAC) up to 50.2 GPa. We have identified that Sb2S3 experiences a series of high-pressure (HP) induced phases (phase II at 12.6 GPa, phase III at 16.9 GPa and phase IV at 21.3 GPa) and eventually develops into a body-centered cubic disordered structure (phase V above 28.2 GPa). Possible candidates for the crystal structures of the intermediate phases (phase II, phase III and phase IV) are suggested, which are still under investigation

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