Hanfland M, Proctor JE, Guillaume CL, Degtyareva O, Gregoryanz E. High-pressure synthesis, amorphization, and decomposition of silane.
PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2011;
106:095503. [PMID:
21405634 DOI:
10.1103/physrevlett.106.095503]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2010] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
By compressing elemental silicon and hydrogen in a diamond anvil cell, we have synthesized polymeric silicon tetrahydride (SiH(4)) at 124 GPa and 300 K. In situ synchrotron x-ray diffraction reveals that the compound forms the insulating I4(1)/a structure previously proposed from ab initio calculations for the high-pressure phase of silane. From a series of high-pressure experiments at room and low temperature on silane itself, we find that its tetrahedral molecules break up, while silane undergoes pressure-induced amorphization at pressures above 60 GPa, recrystallizing at 90 GPa into the polymeric crystal structures.
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