Ternary alkaline earth and rare earth metal palladium phosphides with ThCr 2Si 2- and La 6Ni 6P 17-type structures

Abstract

The new compounds APd 2P 2 (A  Ca, Sr, Y, La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Yb), La 6Pd 6P 17 and Ce 6Pd 6P 17 were prepared by reacting the constituent elements in silica tubes. Their Guinier powder patterns show that they crystallize with ThCr 2Si 2- and La 6Ni 6P 17-type structures. Their lattice constants are reported. A comparison of the cell volumes suggests that europium and ytterbium have intermediate valence in their respective compounds.