Giant negative thermal expansion covering room temperature in nanocrystalline GaN{sub x}Mn{sub 3}
- Key Laboratory of Materials Physics, Institute of Solid State Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031 (China)
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026 (China)
Nanocrystalline antiperovskite GaN{sub x}Mn{sub 3} powders were prepared by mechanically milling. The micrograin GaN{sub x}Mn{sub 3} exhibits an abrupt volume contraction at the antiferromagnetic (AFM) to paramagnetic (PM) (AFM-PM) transition. The temperature window of volume contraction (ΔT) is broadened to 50 K as the average grain size (〈D〉) is reduced to ∼30 nm. The corresponding coefficient of linear thermal expansion (α) reaches ∼ −70 ppm/K, which are comparable to those of giant NTE materials. Further reducing 〈D〉 to ∼10 nm, ΔT exceeds 100 K and α remains as large as −30 ppm/K (−21 ppm/K) for x = 1.0 (x = 0.9). Excess atomic displacements together with the reduced structural coherence, revealed by high-energy X-ray pair distribution functions, are suggested to delay the AFM-PM transition. By controlling 〈D〉, giant NTE may also be achievable in other materials with large lattice contraction due to electronic or magnetic phase transitions.
- OSTI ID:
- 22482164
- Journal Information:
- Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 107, Issue 13; Other Information: (c) 2015 AIP Publishing LLC; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0003-6951
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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