BaCoO2 with Tetrahedral Cobalt Coordination: The Missing Element to Understand Energy Storage and Conversion Applications in BaCoO3-δ-Based Materials.

Barium-cobaltate-based perovskite (BaCoO3-δ) and barium-cobaltate-based nanocomposites have been intensively studied in energy storage and conversion devices mainly due to flexible oxygen stoichiometry and tunable nonprecious transition metal oxidation states. Although a rich and complex family of structural polymorphs has already been reported for these perovskites in the literature, the potential structural evolution that may occur during the oxygen reduction reaction and the oxygen evolution reaction has not been investigated so far. In this study, we synthesized and characterized the lowest Co-oxidation state possible in the compound, BaCoO2, which exhibits a quartz-derived, trigonal structure with a helicoidally corner-sharing, CoO4-tetrahedral-framework as already proposed by Spitsbergen et al. Oxygen can reversibly be inserted in such a crystal structure to form BaCoO3-δ, i.e., with 0 ≤ δ ≤ 1, based on the results of an in situ coupled thermogravimetric - neutron diffraction study and which presents therefore giant oxygen capacity storage due to the extreme tunability of the electronic configuration of the cobalt cations which defines the fundamental origins of the materials performance. The reversible conversion of BaCoO2 to BaCoO3-δ associated with a similar electronic conductivity above 900 K permits to clarify the high potential of BaCoO3-δ-based energy storage and conversion devices.

Ca2MnO3X (X = Cl, Br) Oxyhalides with 1-Dimensional Ferromagnetic Chains of Square-Planar S = 2 Mn3.

Mixed anion oxyhalides with the formula Ca2MnO3X (X = Cl, Br) are synthesized using solid-state reaction methods. These two materials crystallize in a novel structure type due to the small ionic radius of Ca and the strong Jahn-Teller effect of Mn3+. The resulting structure (space group Cmcm) contains one-dimensional chains of MnO4 square planes, with an angle of ∼120° between neighboring planes. At low temperatures, the two materials adopt magnetic arrangements, with ferromagnetic chains coupled antiferromagnetically. On applying a magnetic field, both materials experience spin-flop transitions.

Compressibility of structural modulation waves in the chain compounds BaCoX2O7 (X = As, P): a powder study.

BaCoX2O7 (X = As, P) are built on magnetic 1D units in which strong aperiodic undulations originate from incommensurate structural modulations with large atomic displacive amplitudes perpendicular to the chain directions, resulting in very unique multiferroic properties. High-pressure structural and vibrational properties of both compounds have been investigated by synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction and Raman spectroscopy at room temperature and combined with density functional calculations. A structural phase transition is observed at 1.8 GPa and 6.8 GPa in BaCoAs2O7 and BaCoP2O7, respectively. Sharp jumps are observed in their unit-cell volumes and in Raman mode frequencies, thus confirming the first-order nature of their phase transition. These transitions involve the disappearance of the modulation from the ambient-pressure polymorph with clear spectroscopic fingerprints, such as reduction of the number of Raman modes and change of shape on some peaks. The relation between the evolution of the Raman modes along with the structure are presented and supported by density functional theory structural relaxations.

Three different Ge environments in a new Sr5CuGe9O24 phase synthesized at high pressure and high temperature.

In the framework of expanding the range of copper-based compounds in the pyroxene family, we have synthesized at high pressure and high temperature a powder containing a mixture of a new phase with stoichiometry Sr5CuGe9O24 having two identified impurity phases. Electron crystallography showed that the new phase crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P2/c, with unit-cell parameters a = 11.8 Å, b = 8.1 Å, c = 10.3 Šand ß = 101.3°. We applied the recently developed low-dose electron diffraction tomography method to solve the structure by direct methods. The obtained structure model contains all 9 independent cation positions and all 13 oxygen positions. A subsequent refinement against powder X-ray diffraction data ascertained the high quality of the structure solution, in particular, the unusual structural arrangement that there are three different environments for Ge in this phase.

Metamagnetic Transitions versus Magnetocrystalline Anisotropy in Two Cobalt Arsenates with 1D Co2+ Chains.

We have investigated two original hydrated cobalt arsenates based on Co2+ octahedral edge-sharing chains. Their different magnetocrystalline anisotropies induce different types of metamagnetic transitions: spin-flop versus spin-flip. In both compounds, a strong local anisotropy (Ising spins) is favored by the spin-orbit coupling present in the CoO6 octahedra, while ferromagnetic (FM) exchanges predominate in the chains. Co2(As2O7)·2H2O (1) orders antiferromagnetically below TN = 6.7 K. The magnetic structure is a noncollinear antiferromagnetic spin arrangement along the zigzag chains with DFT calculations implying frustrated chains and weakened anisotropy. A metamagnetic transition suggests a spin-flop process above µ0H = 3.2 T. In contrast, in BaCo2As2O8·2H2O (2) linear chains are arranged in disconnected layers, with only interchain ferromagnetic exchanges, therefore increasing its magnetocrystalline anisotropy. The magnetic structure is collinear with a magnetic easy axis that allows a spin-flop to a sharp spin-flip transition below TN = 15.1 K and above µ0H = 6.2 T.

Investigation of the Structure of the Modulated Doubly Ordered Perovskite NaLaCoWO6 and Its Reversible Phase Transition with a Colossal Temperature Hysteresis.

Transmission electron microscopy, neutron diffraction, and synchrotron powder X-ray diffraction reveal a complex modulated structure on the doubly ordered perovskite NaLaCoWO6. Electron diffraction patterns as well as high-resolution transmission electron microscopy images clearly show a periodicity of 12 ap, where ap is the cell parameter of the generic perovskite, along either the [100]p or [010]p direction. Annular bright-field scanning transmission electron microscopy of slightly tilted samples shows that there is no chemical origin for the superstructure but that it is caused by geometric rearrangements. An atomic model of the superstructure is proposed on the basis of octahedral tilt twinning. At low temperature, NaLaCoWO6 undergoes a phase transition and the superstructure disappears. The compound takes on the more usual monoclinic P21 structure below the transition. Neutron powder diffraction reveals and electron diffraction confirms an unusually large temperature hysteresis, where the transition takes place at ∼180 K on cooling and at ∼320 K on heating. This hysteresis can be attributed to the necessity of rearranging the oxygen octahedra and the thus induced energy barrier for the transition.

Microscopic Insights on the Multiferroic Perovskite-Like [CH3 NH3 ][Co(COOH)3 ] Compound.

The characterization of the crystal structure, phase transitions, magnetic structure and dielectric properties has been carried out on [CH3 NH3 ][Co(COOH)3 ] (1) perovskite-like metal-organic compound through variable-temperature single-crystal and powder neutron and X-ray diffraction and relative permittivity measurements. The paraelectric to antiferroelectric-like phase transition observed at around 90 K is triggered by a structural phase transition; the structural studies show a change from Pnma space group at RT (1A) to P21 /n space group at low temperature (1B). This phase transition involves the occurrence of small distortions in the framework and counterions. Neutron diffraction studies have shown a magnetic order showing spontaneous magnetization below 15 K, due to the occurrence of a non-collinear antiferromagnetic structure with a weak ferromagnetic component, mainly due to the single-ion anisotropy of the CoII ions.

Structural Study of a Doubly Ordered Perovskite Family NaLnCoWO6 (Ln = Y, La, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Yb): Hybrid Improper Ferroelectricity in Nine New Members.

The compounds of the doubly ordered perovskite family NaLnCoWO6 (Ln = Y, La, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, and Yb) were synthesized by solid-state reaction, nine of which (Ln = Y, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, and Yb) are new phases prepared under high-temperature and high-pressure conditions. Their structural properties were investigated at room temperature by synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction and neutron powder diffraction. All of them crystallize in monoclinic structures, especially the nine new compounds have the polar space group P21 symmetry, as confirmed by second harmonic generation measurements. The P21 polar structures were decomposed and refined in terms of symmetry modes, demonstrating that the polar mode is induced by two nonpolar modes in a manner of Hybrid Improper Ferroelectricity. The amplitudes of these three major modes all increase with decreasing the Ln cation size. The spontaneous ferroelectric polarization is estimated from the neutron diffraction data of three samples (Ln = Y, Tb, and Ho) and can be as large as ∼20 µC/cm2.

Synthesis, Structure, and Electrochemical Properties of K-Based Sulfates K2M2(SO4)3 with M = Fe and Cu.

Stabilizing new host structures through potassium extraction from K-based polyanionic materials has been proven to be an interesting approach to develop new Li+/Na+ insertion materials. Pursuing the same trend, we here report the feasibility of preparing langbeinite "Fe2(SO4)3" via electrochemical and chemical oxidation of K2Fe2(SO4)3. Additionally, we succeeded in stabilizing a new K2Cu2(SO4)3 phase via a solid-state synthesis approach. This novel compound crystallizes in a complex orthorhombic structure that differs from that of langbeinite as deduced from synchrotron X-ray and neutron powder diffraction. Electrochemically, the performance of this new phase is limited, which we explain in terms of sluggish diffusion kinetics. We further show that K2Cu2(SO4)3 decomposes into K2Cu3O(SO4)3 on heating, and we report for the first time the synthesis of fedotovite K2Cu3O(SO4)3. Finally, the fundamental attractiveness of these S = 1/2 systems for physicists is examined by neutron magnetic diffraction, which reveals the absence of a long-range ordering of Cu2+ magnetic moments down to 1.5 K.

Structural and magnetic properties of the low-dimensional fluoride ß-FeF3(H2O)2·H2O.

We have reinvestigated the crystal structure of the low-dimensional fluoride ß-FeF3(H2O)2·H2O using high resolution neutron and X-ray diffraction data. Moreover we have studied the magnetic behavior of this material combining medium resolution and high flux neutron powder diffraction together with magnetic susceptibility measurements. This fluoride compound exhibits vertex-shared 1D Fe(3+) octahedral chains, which are extended along the c-axis. The magnetic interactions between adjacent chains involve super-superexchange interactions via an extensive network of hydrogen bonds. This interchain hydrogen bonding scheme is sufficiently strong to induce a long range magnetic order appearing below T = 20(1) K. The magnetic order is characterized by the propagation vector k = (0, 0, 1/2), giving rise to a strictly antiferromagnetic structure where the Fe(3+) spins are lying within the ab-plane. Magnetic exchange couplings extracted from magnetization measurements are found to be J∥/kb = -18 K and J⊥/kb = -3 K. These values are in good agreement with the neutron diffraction data, which show that the system became antiferromagnetically ordered at ca. TN = 20(1) K.

Magnetic order through super-superexchanges in the polar magnetoelectric organic-inorganic hybrid Cr[(D3N-(CH2)2-PO3)(Cl)(D2O)].

The crystal and magnetic structures of the organic-inorganic hybrid compound Cr(II) ammoniumethylphosphonate chloride monohydrate, Cr[D(3)N-(CH(2))(2)-PO(3))(Cl)(D(2)O)] (1), have been studied by temperature-dependent neutron powder diffraction and superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) magnetometry. The compound represents a rare example of a magnetoelectric polar organic-inorganic hybrid solid, containing high spin Cr(2+) ions (S = 2) and is a canted antiferromagnet (weak ferromagnet) below T(N) = 5.5 K. The neutron powder diffraction pattern recorded at T = 10 K, shows that the partially deuterated compound crystallizes in the same non centrosymmetric monoclinic space group P2(1) (No. 4) with the following unit-cell parameters: a = 5.24041(4) Å, b =13.93113(8) Å, c = 5.26081(4) Å, and ß = 105.4347(5)°. Powder neutron diffraction of a partially deuterated sample has enabled us, for the first time, to locate the water molecule. At low temperature, the compound presents a canted antiferromagnetic state characterized by k = 0 resulting in the magnetic symmetry P2(1)'. This symmetry is in agreement with the previously reported large magnetodielectric effect. The crystal structure of (1) can be described as being built up of triangular lattice planes made up of [Cr(II)O(4)Cl] square pyramids which are separated by ammonium ethyl groups along the b axis. The transition from paramagnetic to weakly ferromagnetic state results from super-superexchanges only. Surprisingly, while the overall magnetic behavior is antiferromagnetic, the Cr(II)O(4)Cl planes are ferromagnetic, and the strongest antiferromagnetic coupling is via the ammonium ethyl groups. Our density functional calculations confirm these aspects of the spin exchange interactions of (1) and that the spin exchange interactions between Cr(II) ions are considerably weak compared with the single-ion anisotropy of Cr(II).

The role of order-disorder transitions in the quest for molecular multiferroics: structural and magnetic neutron studies of a mixed valence iron(II)-iron(III) formate framework.

Neutron diffraction studies have been carried out to shed light on the unprecedented order-disorder phase transition (ca. 155 K) observed in the mixed-valence iron(II)-iron(III) formate framework compound [NH(2)(CH(3))(2)](n)[Fe(III)Fe(II)(HCOO)(6)](n). The crystal structure at 220 K was first determined from Laue diffraction data, then a second refinement at 175 K and the crystal structure determination in the low temperature phase at 45 K were done with data from the monochromatic high resolution single crystal diffractometer D19. The 45 K nuclear structure reveals that the phase transition is associated with the order-disorder of the dimethylammonium counterion that is weakly anchored in the cavities of the [Fe(III)Fe(II)(HCOO)(6)](n) framework. In the low-temperature phase, a change in space group from P31c to R3c occurs, involving a tripling of the c-axis due to the ordering of the dimethylammonium counterion. The occurrence of this nuclear phase transition is associated with an electric transition, from paraelectric to antiferroelectric. A combination of powder and single crystal neutron diffraction measurements below the magnetic order transition (ca. 37 K) has been used to determine unequivocally the magnetic structure of this Néel N-Type ferrimagnet, proving that the ferrimagnetic behavior is due to a noncompensation of the different Fe(II) and Fe(III) magnetic moments.