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Structural instability and superconductivity in the solid solution SrNi 2 (P 1− x Ge x ) 2
Author(s) -
Hlukhyy Viktor,
Hoffmann Andrea V.,
Grinenko Vadim,
Scheiter Juliane,
Hummel Franziska,
Johrendt Dirk,
Fässler Thomas F.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
physica status solidi (b)
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.51
H-Index - 109
eISSN - 1521-3951
pISSN - 0370-1972
DOI - 10.1002/pssb.201600351
Subject(s) - superconductivity , crystal structure , electrical resistivity and conductivity , solid solution , crystallography , x ray crystallography , density of states , electron localization function , condensed matter physics , tin , electronic band structure , chemistry , diffraction , materials science , physics , electron , quantum mechanics , optics , organic chemistry
The solid solution SrNi 2 (P 1− x Ge x ) 2 with ThCr 2 Si 2 ‐type structure has been synthesized over the whole composition range by high‐temperature solid state reactions. Structure investigations were performed using X‐ray diffraction (XRD) methods. In addition, in situ temperature‐dependent powder XRD measurements down to 10 K were carried out for two SrNi 2 (P 1− x Ge x ) 2 samples with x = 0.110(3) and 0.212(3), which indicate a temperature‐induced collapse of the structure of the first compound around 200 K. For both samples, superconductivity was detected above 1.8 K by magnetic, resistivity, and heat capacity measurements ( T C ∼ 3.0 and 2.4 K, respectively). The crystal chemistry and the chemical bonding in the superconducting compounds are discussed in terms of linear muffin‐tin orbital (LMTO) band structure calculations including density of states (DOS), crystal orbital Hamilton populations (COHPs), and a topological analysis using the electron localization function (ELF).