Space Group P3m1 Research Articles

Anisotropy of elastic properties of cubic Nb3O3 niobium monoxide

The band structure calculation indicated that cubic Nb3O3 niobium monooxide is a com-pound with metallic conductivity. The anisotropy of the elastic properties of cubic (space group Pm3‾m) niobium monoxide Nb3O3 has been studied. The elastic stiffness constants cij for cubic Nb3O3 monoxide are computed using the density functional theory. The dependences of the Young's, bulk and shear moduli, as well as the Poisson's ratio in the (100), (110) and (111) planes of cubic niobium monoxide Nb3O3 on the crystallographic direction [hkl] are calculated. It is found that the maximum the Young's and shear moduli are observed in the [001], [010], and [100] directions, and the minimum values of the Young's and shear moduli are observed in the [±1 ± 1 ±1] directions of cubic niobium monoxide, respectively. Relatively small changes in the elastic characteristics of Nb3O3 depending on the [hkl] direction indicate a slight anisotropy of its elastic properties. Cubic niobium monoxide is mechanically and dynamically stable. The hardness HV and the Debye temperature θD of polycrystalline cubic niobium monoxide Nb3O3 are determined to be 17.2 GPa and ∼640 K, respectively.

Stabilization of cubic phase in Y-doped (BaSr)(Fe1-xYx)O3-δ perovskites: Sol-gel synthesis, Raman and photoluminescent characteristics

Attempt has been made here to synthesize yttrium doped (Ba0.90Sr0.10)(Fe1-xYx)O3-δ (x = 0 – 0.20) oxides by sol-gel technique to study the influence of yttrium with regard to phase(s), strain, Raman and photoluminescent behaviour. It exhibits perovskite-type cubic and mixture of cubic and orthorhombic phases for x = 0 - 0.10 and > 0.10, respectively. The cubic lattice parameter increases linearly (a ∼4.019 - 4.054 Å, space group Pm3 m, Z = 1) with yttrium, leading to lattice expansion. Similarly, the average bond length also increases linearly (dc ∼ 2.426 - 2.447) with ‘x’. The bond angles along O-B-O and B-O-B are deviated due to the tilting and rotation of BO6 octahedra. Raman spectra reveal no band formation for the cubic phase of composition but appear for orthorhombic phase with x > 0.10. It consist bands at ∼130, 148, 222, and 372, and a broad band at ∼690 cm-1, associated with Ba/Sr bonded vibration, symmetric stretching of oxygen, and occurrence of oxygen vacancies. The photoluminescence spectra reveal peaks at ∼339, 411, 456, 486.5, and 525.5 nm (say; for x = 0.05), assigned to charge transfer transition O2p to iron and/or yttrium, interface trapping-induced radiative defects as well as shallow surface defects, and huge oxygen vacancies with trapped electrons, etc. These findings make materials useful in membrane technology.

Synthesis, crystal and electronic structure of the Zintl phase Ba16Sb11. A case study uncovering greater structural complexity via monoclinic distortion of the tetragonal Ca16Sb11 structure type.

AbstractThe binary Zintl phase Ba16Sb11 has been synthesized and structurally characterized. Detailed studies via single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction methods indicate that although Ba16Sb11 appears to crystallize in the tetragonal Ca16Sb11 structure type (space group P 21m with a=13.5647(9) Å, c=12.4124(12) Å, Z=2, R1=3.14 %; wR2=4.77 %), there exists an extensive structural disorder. Some Ba16Sb11 crystals were found to be monoclinic and the structure was solved and refined in space group P21 (a=18.3929(12) Å, b=13.5233(8) Å, c=18.3978(12) Å, β=94.6600(10)°; Z=4, R1=5.84 %; wR2=9.58 %). The latter corresponds to a 2‐fold superstructure of the tetragonal one, which provides a disorder‐free structural model. In both descriptions, the disordered tetragonal and the ordered monoclinic superstructure, the basic building units that make up the structure of this Ba‐rich compound are pairs of face‐shared square antiprisms of Ba atoms, which are centered by Sb atoms. The dimerized antiprisms are linked into parallel chains via square prisms of Ba atoms, which are also centered by Sb atoms. The Zintl concept can be applied in a straightforward manner and as result, the structure of Ba32Sb22 (=2×Ba16Sb11) can be rationalized as (Ba2+)32(Sb3−)20[Sb2]4−. The partitioning of the valence electrons is done taking into an account the homoatomic Sb−Sb contacts (d=3.01 Å), which can be clearly distinguished in the lower symmetry space group. Electronic structure calculations of Ba16Sb11 are in good accordance with the Zintl rationalization and predict a semiconductor with a band gap of 0.77 eV.

Metal Flux Growth of Lanthanide Carbide Hydrides Using Anthracene.

Reactions of anthracene in Ln/T eutectic mixtures (Ln = La, Yb; T = Ni, Cu) have produced crystals of new complex lanthanide carbide hydride phases. The thermal decomposition of anthracene provides a source of both carbon and hydrogen. LaCHx forms in space group Pnma with unit cell parameters a = 7.2736(4) Å, b = 3.7218(2) Å, and c = 13.0727(7) Å. Yb2CHx forms in space group P-3m1 with unit cell parameters a = 3.5659(4) Å and c = 5.8000(8) Å, with a structure related to that of Ho2CF2. The presence of hydride in interstitial sites is supported by the formation of different compounds in the absence of hydrogen and by comparison to known hydride structures. 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra collected on LaCHx show two unique hydride resonances, in agreement with the two available interstitial sites. Density of states calculations show that filling the tetrahedral sites in LaCHx with hydrogen increases metallic behavior, while adding hydrogen into the tetrahedral sites in Yb2CHx induces the formation of a band gap.

Influence of the substituent LiNbO3 in the structural, ferroelectric, dielectric, optical and mechanical properties of K0.5Bi0.5TiO3

Eco-friendly, K0.5Bi0.5TiO3 based binary perovskite system with small amount of LiNbO3 was synthesised and its influence in the structural, ferroelectric, optical and mechanical properties is analyzed. The samples, (1-x)K0.5Bi0.5TiO3-xLiNbO3, named as KLN100x (x = 0.04–0.08) could be refined in both ideal cubic perovskite structure (space group Pm3¯m) and in the tetragonal P4mm structure. The tetragonality of all the samples is close to unity which is common for relaxor ferroelectric perovskites. KLN4, KLN5, KLN6 and KLN7 shows relaxor like polarization-electric field (P-E) loops while highly distorted P-E loop was observed for KLN8. Emergence of impurity phases at higher doping concentrations lead to distorted P-E loop limiting ferroelectric application for higher concentrations. The temperature dependent dielectric curve along with ln(1/εr-1/εm) Vs. ln(T-Tm) plot further confirms the relaxor behavior of the samples. The relaxor nature reduces the energy barrier required for dipole switching in ferroelectric materials resulting in low remanent polarization and enhance the energy storage properties. The recoverable energy density of 1.3 J/cm3 for KLN4 at a low electric field of 100 kV/cm makes it an appealing candidate in the energy storage domain.

Layered GaGe2Te: structure and chemical bonding

AbstractThe structure of the new compound GaGe2Te has been determined using nanofocused synchrotron radiation. The trigonal structure (space group P m1, a=4.0443(3) Å, c=14.923(2) Å, V=211.38(4) Å3; Z=2) consists of Ge bilayers sandwiched by Ga−Te layers. Ge and Ga are tetrahedrally coordinated. The layer packages are separated by a van der Waals gap with a Te−Te distance of 4.1502(7) Å. The structure resembles that of GaGeTe but features an additional Ge atom layer. Despite small scattering contrast of Ga and Ge, precise high‐resolution data enable unequivocal atom assignment as confirmed by R values of different models. DFT calculations suggest only a small extent of charge transfer, which is confirmed by both Bader and Mulliken charges. Thus, bonding within the layer packages is predominantly covalent, especially between Ga and Ge. Formal oxidation states according to GaIIIGe(0)Ge−ITe−II, i. e. assuming rather ionic Ge−Ga bonds, convey a much less realistic situation than GaIIGe2(0)Te−II, which is in line with GaGeTe.

Improvement of optical and conductivity properties of SnS2 via Cr doping for photovoltaic applications

Tin disulfide doped with chromium (Sn1−xCrxS2) powders with different molar ratios (x = 0, 2, 4, 6, and 10 at%) were synthesized using a low-cost hydrothermal technique. The prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), UV-Vis spectroscopy, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The Sn1−xCrxS2 samples maintained the hexagonal structure with space group (S.G.) P-3m1 from the SnS2 structure, according to XRD and Raman measurements. Cr doping was confirmed by EDS, where Cr partially substituted Sn in the SnS2 structure. SEM images also displayed good homogeneity and smaller particle sizes as Cr doping increased. HRTEM and selected-area electron diffraction (SAED) analysis showed high crystallinity of the synthesized samples. The optical bandgap energy (Eg) of the Cr-doped samples with x = 6% was found to be the lowest among the measured values, and even lower than that of the pure SnS2 sample. The conductivity of the samples was measured through-plane using EIS, and the Sn1−xCrxS2 samples with x = 6% again showed superior conductivity performance within the investigated temperature ranges. These findings further support the potential of Cr-doped SnS2 systems for use as a buffer layer in photovoltaic applications.

Structural evolution and thermoelectric properties of Mg3SbxBi2−x thin films deposited by magnetron sputtering

Mg3Bi2-based compounds are of great interest for thermoelectric applications near room temperature. Here, undoped p-type Mg3SbxBi2−x thin films were synthesized using magnetron sputtering (three elemental targets in Ar atmosphere) with a growth temperature of 200 °C on three different substrates, namely, Si as well as c- and r-sapphire. The elemental composition was measured with energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy and the structure by x-ray diffraction. The electrical resistivity and the Seebeck coefficient were determined under He atmosphere from room temperature to the growth temperature. All samples are crystalline exhibiting the La2O3-type crystal structure (space group P-3m1). The observed thermoelectric response is consistent with a semiconductive behavior. With increasing x, the samples become more electrically resistive due to the increasing bandgap. High Bi content (x < 1) is thus beneficial due to lower resistivity and a higher power factor near room temperature. Thermoelectric thin films synthesized at low temperatures may provide novel pathways to enable flexible devices on polymeric and other heat-sensitive substrates.

The system Hf–Re–Si at 10000C

The interaction of the components in the ternary system Hf–Re–Si was investigated by X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The isothermal section of the phase diagram at 10000C was constructed in the full concentration range. The limits of solubility of Si in the binary compounds Hf5Re24 and HfRe2 were found to be 11 and 16 at.%, respectively. The existence of three ternary compounds was confirmed and their crystal structures were refined: HfReSi2 (ZrCrSi2-type structure, space group Pbam, a=9.1271(3) Å, b=10.0356(4) Å, c=8.0708(3) Å), HfReSi (ZrNiAl-type structure, space group P-62m, a=6.9240(2) Å, c=3.3890(1) Å) and k-phase Hf9+xRe4–xSi (Hf9Mo4B-type structure, space group P63/mmc, a=8.5835(12) Å, c=8.7135(13) Å). The character of the interaction between the components in the Hf–Re–Si system and related ternary systems is briefly discussed.

First-principles study of the structural phase transition and optical properties for MoS2 at high pressure

The structural phase transition, electronic structures, and optical properties of MoS2 are investigated at high pressure via first-principles calculations. Among the 12 structures of MoS2 including stable and metastable structures, the 2R1-MoS2 (described by space group P3m1) and the 3Hb-MoS2 (described by space group P63/mmc) are identified as the stable structures. The results of the electronic structures show that the 2R1-MoS2 transforms from semiconductor to metal and the metallicity of the 3Hb-MoS2 increases under pressure. The optical properties of MoS2 are significantly enhanced and red-shifted in the low-energy region with increasing pressure.

Effect of Ca substitution on structural, magnetic and dielectric properties of Sr2MnTiO6 double perovskite

We report the structural, magnetic and dielectric properties of polycrystalline samples of double perovskites Sr2-xCaxMnTiO6 (x = 0 and 1) synthesized by the solid-state reaction method. The compound Sr2MnTiO6 (x = 0) could be indexed in both cubic structure (space group Pm3‾m) and tetragonal structure (space group I4/m); whereas by replacing Sr by Ca, i.e., SrCaMnTiO6 (x = 1) orthorhombic structure space group Pbnm is observed. Along with the differences in the crystal structure of these two compounds, noticeable differences in the physical properties were also observed. The magnetization data of Sr2MnTiO6 reveals magnetic anomaly at TC ⁓ 14 K, whereas the magnetization data of SrCaMnTiO6 exhibits antiferromagnetic ordering at TN = 7.5 K. The conductivity and dielectric behavior of these samples investigated over a wide frequency range at room temperature exhibits dipolar relaxation.

Oxygen-Ion and Proton Transport of Origin and Ca-Doped La2ZnNdO5.5 Materials

Oxygen-ionic and proton-conducting oxides are widely studied materials for their application in various electrochemical devices such as solid oxide fuel cells and electrolyzers. Rare earth oxides are known as a class of ionic conductors. In this paper, La2ZnNdO5.5 and its Ca-doped derivatives La2Nd0.9Ca0.1ZnO5.45 and La2ZnNd0.9Ca0.1O5.45 were obtained by a solid-state reaction route. Phase composition, lattice parameters, and hydration capability were investigated by X-ray diffraction and thermogravimetric analyses. The conductivities of these materials were measured by the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy technique in dry (pH2O = 3.5 × 10−5 atm) and wet (pH2O = 2 × 10−2 atm) air. All phases crystallized in a trigonal symmetry with P3m1 space group. The conductivity difference between undoped and calcium-doped samples is more than two orders of magnitude due to the appearance of oxygen vacancies during acceptor doping, which are responsible for a higher ionic conductivity. The La2Nd0.9Ca0.1ZnO5.45 sample shows the highest conductivity of about 10−3 S∙cm−1 at 650 °C. The Ca-doped phases are capable of reversible water uptake, confirming their proton-conducting nature.

Effects of Mn-substitution on magnetic properties of R6TX2-based (R = Gd–Dy, T = Mn–Ni; X = Sb and Te) multinary compounds

The multinary compounds Dy6Mn0.3Fe0.7Sb2, Dy6MnSbTe, {Gd, Tb}6FeSbTe, Gd3Tb3FeSbTe, {Gd, Tb}2Dy4Mn0.25Fe0.75Sb2, Gd2Tb4Mn0.25Fe0.75SbTe, Tb6Mn0.25{Fe, Co, Ni}0.75SbTe, Tb6Mn0.4Co0.6SbTe and Tb6Mn0.5Ni0.5SbTe crystallize in the Zr6CoAl2-type structure (ordered variant of the Fe2P structure) (space group P-62m, N 189, hP9). The polycrystalline samples Gd3Tb3FeSbTe, {Gd, Tb}2Dy4Mn0.25Fe0.75Sb2, Gd2Tb4Mn0.25Fe0.75SbTe, Tb6Mn0.25{Fe, Co, Ni}0.75SbTe, Tb6Mn0.4Co0.6SbTe and Tb6Mn0.5Ni0.5SbTe exhibit high-temperature ferromagnetic ordering and low-temperature field sensitive transformation of magnetic ordering. Of these compounds, Gd2Tb4Mn0.25Fe0.75SbTe shows the highest Curie temperature at 292 K with the low-temperature transformation of magnetic ordering at 60 K. Gd3Tb3FeSbTe displays the strongest hard magnetic properties at low temperatures with residual magnetization per formula unit of 16 μB and coercive field of 16 kOe at 2 K. Tb6Mn0.25Ni0.75SbTe and Tb6Mn0.4Co0.6SbTe exhibit large magnetocaloric effect with magnetic entropy change of −4.6 J/kg⋅K and −4.5 J/kg⋅K, respectively, around Curie temperature in a field change of 50 kOe.The specific features of Mn-catalysis/substitution for magnetic properties of these compounds are viewed and discussed.

Enabling high ionic conductivity in yttrium-based lithium halide electrolytes by composition modulation for all-solid-state batteries

Chloride electrolytes have again become a focus of research in recent years due to the oxidative stability at high potential. Y-based chlorides such as Li3YCl6 have a considerable ionic conductivity of ∼10−4 S/cm. The ionic conductivity of a solid-state electrolyte (SSE) is closely related to its crystal structure. Low lithium concentration composition is beneficial for lithium-ion conduction structure. Due to the presence of more free octahedral sites, the crystal structure with Pnma space group has a better ion diffusion compared to the crystal structure with P-3m1 space group with hexagonal close-packed structure (hcp). In addition to this, the doping of cations with higher valence states results in more lithium vacancy compensation in the crystal structure, which is a significant modification to improve the ionic conductivity of the chloride. Herein, ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) simulations were performed to investigate the effects of the lithium-deficient state configuration and the cation Nb5+ doping modification on the ion conduction of LiaYClb solid-state electrolytes. The lithium-deficient state composition structure has shifted the material space group structure from P-3m1 to Pnma, which facilitates the diffusion of lithium ions. The Nb5+ doping has increased the chance of lithium ion co-diffusion and disordered the lithium ion sites near the Y(Nb) cation site, resulting in a lower ab-plane diffusion barrier and a significant improvement of lithium ion migration. A series of lithium-deficient state compositions and Nb-doped chlorides were synthesized. Li2.31Y0.98Nb0.02Cl5.31 is obtained by solid sintering preparation with an ionic conductivity close to 1.0 × 10−3 S/cm and high electrochemical stability. The full cell of Li2.31Y0.98Nb0.02Cl5.31 matched with bare LiCoO2 maintains stability for 100 cycles.

Prediction of new stable crystal structures for ternary ErAgTe2 and YAgTe2 semiconductors: Ab initio study

The crystal structure, electronic, mechanical, and phonon properties of rare-earth ErAgTe2 and YAgTe2 compounds have been investigated using first-principles calculations based on density functional theory. We consider three different crystal structures: tetragonal (space group P 4‾ 21m, No. 113), orthorhombic (space group P212121, No. 19), and trigonal (space group P3m1, No. 156). The results indicate that all structures exhibit mechanical and dynamical stability with an anisotropic and ductile nature. The band gap is calculated using both PBE and HSE06 methods. The electronic properties of ErAgTe2 and YAgTe2 revealing the energy band gaps indicate that these compounds are semiconductors. The mechanical properties such as bulk, shear, Young's modulus, and Poisson's ratio were calculated. Finally, we explored the thermodynamic parameters, including the Debye temperatures and minimum thermal conductivities.

Ba1.09Pb0.91Be2(BO3)2F2: The First Pb-Containing Beryllium Borate Fluoride with Trigonal Prismatic PbO6 and 2D [Be3B3O6F3]∞ Layers.

Ba1.09Pb0.91Be2(BO3)2F2 (BPBBF), a previously unreported lead-containing beryllium borate fluoride, has been successfully grown through a high-temperature flux method. Its structure is solved by single-crystal X-ray diffraction (SC-XRD), and it is optically characterized via infrared, Raman, UV-vis-IR transmission, and polarizing spectra as well. SC-XRD data suggests that it can be indexed by a trigonal unit cell (space group P3m1) with lattice parameters a = 4.7478(6) Å, c = 8.3856(12) Å, Z = 1, and V = 163.70(5) Å. This material could be considered as a derivative of the Sr2Be2B2O7 (SBBO) structural motif. It consists of 2D [Be3B3O6F3]∞ layers in the crystallographic ab plane, with divalent Ba2+ or Pb2+ cations serving as spacers among the adjacent layers. Ba and Pb were found to adopt a disordered arrangement in the trigonal prismatic coordination within the BPBBF structural lattice, which is evidenced by both structural refinements against SC-XRD data and energy dispersive spectroscopy. The UV absorption edge (279.1 nm) and birefringence (Δn = 0.054@ 546.1 nm) of BPBBF are confirmed by UV-vis-IR transmission and polarizing spectra, respectively. The discovery of this previous unreported SBBO-type material, BPBBF, along with other reported analogues such as BaMBe2(BO3)2F2 (M = Ca, Mg, and Cd), provide a prodigious example for tuning the bandgap, birefringence, and short UV absorption edge via simple chemical substitution.

Ground-State Structure of Quaternary Alloys (SiC)1−x (AlN)x and (SiC)1−x (GaN)x

Despite III-nitride and silicon carbide being the materials of choice for a wide range of applications, theoretical studies on their quaternary alloys are limited. Here, we report a systematic computational study on the electronic structural properties of (SiC)x (AlN)1-x and (SiC)x (AlN)1-x quaternary alloys, based on state-of-the-art first-principles evolutionary algorithms. Trigonal (SiCAlN, space group P3m1) and orthorhombic (SiCGaN, space group Pmn21) crystal phases were as predicted for x = 0.5. SiCAlN showed relatively weak thermodynamic instability, while that of SiCGaN was slightly elevated, rendering them both dynamically and mechanically stable at ambient pressure. Our calculations revealed that the Pm31 crystal has high elastic constants, (C11~458 GPa and C33~447 GPa), a large bulk modulus (B0~210 GPa), and large Young's modulus (E~364 GPa), and our results suggest that SiCAlN is potentially a hard material, with a Vickers hardness of 21 GPa. Accurate electronic structures of SiCAlN and SiCGaN were calculated using the Tran-Blaha modified Becke-Johnson semi-local exchange potential. Specifically, we found evidence that SiCGaN has a very wide direct bandgap of 3.80 eV, while that of SiCAlN was indirect at 4.6 eV. Finally, for the quaternary alloys, a relatively large optical bandgap bowing of ~3 eV was found for SiCGaN, and a strong optical bandgap bowing of 0.9 eV was found for SiCAlN.

Control of structural and magnetic transition in GeNCr3 by doping manganese ions

As an archetypal antiperovskite nitride compound, GeNCr3 undergoes a temperature-driven first-order antiferromagnetic-paramagnetic transition at approximately 418 K, accompanied with a structural phase transition from space group P-421m to I4/mcm. In this paper, we show that the critical temperature of GeNCr3 can be tuned from 418 to 240 K by doping manganese ions. Simultaneously, the evolution of the magnetic transition is consistent with the structural transition. Using temperature-dependent X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, in combination with first-principles calculations, we demonstrate that doping manganese ions tend to occupy the equatorial plane of the nitrogen octahedron.

Ternary magnesium gallides – synthesis, crystal chemistry and properties of CaMgGa, SrMgGa, BaMgGa and YbMgGa

AbstractThe gallides CaMgGa, SrMgGa, BaMgGa and YbMgGa were synthesized from the elements in sealed tantalum ampoules in muffle furnaces. The phase purity of the samples was checked by powder X‐ray diffraction. CaMgGa and YbMgGa crystallize with the ZrNiAl type structure, space group P 2m, whereas SrMgGa and BaMgGa adopt an ordering variant of the Cu2Sb/PbFCl type, space group P4/nmm. The structures of SrMg0.884(7)Ga1.116(7) (a=459.23(9), c=792.43(12) pm, wR2=0.0371, 226 F2 values, 11 variables) and YbMgGa (a=774.55(7), c=411.95(4) pm, wR2=0.0329, 342 F2 values, 15 variables) were refined from single crystal X‐ray diffractometer data. Refinement of the occupancy parameters indicated a small degree of Mg/Ga mixing on the 2a site for the strontium compound. The [MgGa] substructures in both compounds are composed of condensed Mg@Ga4 tetrahedra with 4×287 pm Mg−Ga in SrMg0.884Ga1.116 vs 2×282 and 2×296 pm in YbMgGa. The SrMgGa structure has a stacking of layers of edge‐sharing Mg@Ga4 and Sr4 tetrahedra. Electronic structure calculations indicate a net charge transfer from strontium and magnesium to gallium. YbMgGa completes the series of REMgGa gallides. Temperature dependent magnetic susceptibility studies reveal weak Pauli paramagnetism, confirming divalent ytterbium.

Structure, magnetic and magnetocaloric properties of polycrystalline Er3AlC compound

The development of magnetic materials with large magnetocaloric effects for solid state refrigeration technology is receiving increasing attention. In this work, the crystal structure, magnetic and magnetocaloric properties of polycrystalline Er3AlC compound are investigated. Powder X-ray diffraction indicate that Er3AlC crystallizes in the inverse perovskite structure, belonging to the space group Pm3¯m(221). The polycrystalline sample exhibits two successive magnetic transitions: antiferromagnetic-ferromagnetic below 2 K and ferromagnetic–paramagnetic transition around 4.1 K. The value of the maximum magnetic entropy changes are 13.9 J/kg K and 30.5 J/kg K under the field changes of 0–2 T and 0–5 T, respectively. The large magnetic entropy change under low fields makes Er3AlC compound a potential candidate for cryogenic magnetic refrigeration.