Metallization and superconductivity in the hydrogen-rich ionic salt BaReH9
- Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, D.C. (United States)
- Univ. of Nevada, Reno, NV (United States)
BaReH9 is an exceedingly high hydrogen content metal hydride that is predicted to exhibit interesting behavior under pressure. The high-pressure electronic properties of this material were investigated using diamond-anvil cell electrical conductivity techniques to megabar (100 GPa) pressures. The measurements show that BeReH9 transforms to a metal and then superconductor above 100 GPa with a maximum Tc near 7 K. The occurrence of superconductivity is confirmed by the suppression of the resistance drop on application of magnetic fields. The transition to the metallic phase is sluggish, but is accelerated by laser irradiation. Raman scattering and x-ray diffraction measurements, used to supplement the electrical measurements, indicate that the Ba-Re sublattice is largely preserved on compression at the conditions explored, but there is a possibility that hydrogen atoms are gradually disordered under pressure. This is suggested from sharpening of peaks of Raman spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction by heat treatment as well as temperature dependence of resistance under pressure. The data suggest that the transition to the superconducting state is first order. Furthermore, the possibility that the transition is associated with the breakdown of BeReH9 is discussed.
- Research Organization:
- Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, D.C. (United States); Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRC) (United States). Energy Frontier Research in Extreme Environments (EFree)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
- Grant/Contract Number:
- NA0002006; SC0001057
- OSTI ID:
- 1335842
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Physical Chemistry. C, Vol. 119, Issue 32; ISSN 1932-7447
- Publisher:
- American Chemical SocietyCopyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Electrical resistance of single-crystal magnetite (Fe 3 O 4 ) under quasi-hydrostatic pressures up to 100 GPa
Evidence for Superconductivity above 260 K in Lanthanum Superhydride at Megabar Pressures