Long-period superstructures in Cu3±xPd

Pd0.213Cd0.787 and Pd0.235Cd0.765 Structures: Their Longc Axis and Composite Crystals, Chemical Twinning, and Atomic Site Preferences

We present single-crystal studies of Pd(0.213)Cd(0.787) and Pd(0.235)Cd(0.765), synchrotron powder studies of Pd(1-x)Cd(x), 0.755> or =x> or =0.800, and LDA-DFT and extended Hückel (eH) calculations on these or related phases. The two single-crystal structures have a, b, and c axis lengths of 9.9013(7), 14.0033(10), 37.063(24) and 9.9251(3), 14.0212(7), 60.181(3) A, respectively and they crystallize in the space groups Ccme and F2mm, respectively (solved as (3+1)-dimensional crystals their most convenient superspace group is Xmmm(00gamma)s00). The structures have two different structural components each with their own separate axis parameters. Powder data shows that the ratio of these separate axes (S/L) varies from 1.615 to 1.64, values near the golden mean (1.618). For Pd(0.213)Cd(0.787), different Pd and Cd site occupancies lead to variation in the R factor from 2.6-3.6 %. The site occupancy pattern with the lowest R factor (among the 26 820 variants studied) is the exact site occupancy pattern predicted by LDA-DFT parameterized eH Mulliken charge populations. The phases can be understood through a chemical twinning principle found in gamma-brass, the parent structure for the above phases (a relation with the MgCu(2) Laves phase is also noted). This twinning principle can be used to account for Cd and Pd site preferences. At the same time there is a clean separation among the Cd and Pd atoms for the two separate chain types at height b=0 and 1/2. These results indicate that Cd:Pd stoichiometry plays a role in phase stability.

Fermi surface nesting in disordered Cu1-xPdx alloys

The concentration-dependent position of the diffuse peaks in electron and x-ray diffraction patterns of Cu1-xPdx alloys in the disordered state is attributed to Fermi surface nesting. We present the first experimentally determined Fermi surfaces of Cu0.72Pd0.28 and Cu0.6Pd0.4, and show that they do indeed possess significant flat areas capable of nesting. Moreover, the magnitudes of the nesting vectors are in excellent agreement with those deduced from electronic structure calculations and diffraction experiments.

Microstructure and segregation behavior of palladium in silver-copper-palladium alloys

It has been reported that the addition of palladium can modify the microstructure and improve the properties of Ag-Cu eutectic alloy as well as admixed Cu-rich amalgam. The purpose of this work was to study the microstructure and segregation behavior of palladium in a series of Ag-Cu-Pd alloys. All microstructural and microchemical results consistently indicated a strong tendency for palladium to form the ordered Cu3Pd superlattice in the copper-rich phase of the present ternary alloys. Transmission electron microscopic examination indicated that, in addition to the large Cu-rich particles, numerous small (typically tens of nanometers) Cu-rich particles were distributed in the Ag-rich phase. In the alloys containing 10 and 15 wt% Pd, the Cu3Pd superlattice had an L1(2)-type crystal structure. In the alloy containing 20 wt% Pd, the Cu3Pd had a periodic (regular) APB structure. The solubility of palladium in the Cu-rich phase was always much larger than that in the Ag-rich phase. The ratio of the palladium concentration in the copper-rich phase to that in the silver-rich phase decreased with the overall palladium content.