skip to main content
US FlagAn official website of the United States government
dot gov icon
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
https lock icon
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( lock ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.


Title: Phase equilibria and metastability in the high-entropy A6B2O17 oxide family with A = Zr, Hf and B = Nb, Ta
The present work details experimental phase stabilization studies for the disordered, multi-cation A6B2O17 (A = Zr, Hf; B = Nb, Ta) system. We leverage both high-temperature in situ and ex situ X-ray diffraction to assess phase equilibrium and metastability in A6B2O17 ceramics produced via reactive sintering of stoichiometric as-received powders. We observe that the A6B2O17 phase can be stabilized for any stoichiometric combination of Group 4B and 5B transition metal cations (Zr, Nb, Hf, Ta), including ternary and quinary systems. The observed minimum stabilization temperatures for these phases are generally in agreement with prior calculations for each disordered A6B2O17 ternary permutation, offering further support for the inferred cation-disordered structure and suggesting that chemical disorder in this system is thermodynamically preferable. We also note that the quinary (Zr3Hf3)(NbTa)O17 phase exhibits enhanced solubility of refractory cations which is characteristic of other high-entropy oxides. Furthermore, A6B2O17 phases experience kinetic metastability, with the orthorhombic structure remaining stable following anneals at intermediate temperatures.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
1841466 1841453
PAR ID:
10478826
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ;
Publisher / Repository:
Spring Link
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Journal of Materials Science
Volume:
58
Issue:
14
ISSN:
0022-2461
Page Range / eLocation ID:
6164 to 6173
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. We report on temperature-dependent dielectric behavior of disordered ternary A6B2O17 (A = Zr, Hf; B = Nb, Ta)-form oxides in the GHz frequency range. The microwave dielectric properties including relative permittivity, dielectric loss, and temperature-dependent relative permittivity were characterized using cylindrical dielectric resonators using a resonant post measurement technique. Dielectric measurements through the resonant post method approach generally agree with dielectric measurements of A6B2O17 bulk ceramics measured through standard resonant post techniques. Coefficients describing the temperature-dependent relative permittivity for ternary A6B2O17 phases are strongly positive, suggesting contributions to polarizability arising from long-range mechanisms potentially associated with structural disorder. These observations support the working hypothesis that material functionality can be engineered by the chemical diversity and structural disorder possible in high configurational entropy A6B2O17 phases. 
    more » « less
  2. Abstract We report on the structure and dielectric properties of ternary A6B2O17(A = Zr; B = Nb, Ta) thin films and ceramics. Thin films are produced via sputter deposition from dense, phase‐homogenous bulk ceramic targets, which are synthesized through a reactive sintering process at 1500°C. Crystal structure, microstructure, chemistry, and dielectric properties are characterized by X‐ray diffraction and reflectivity, atomic force microscopy, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and capacitance analysis, respectively. We observe relative permittivities approaching 60 and loss tangents <1 × 10−2across the 103–105 Hz frequency range in the Zr6Nb2O17and Zr6Ta2O17phases. These observations create an opportunity space for this novel class of disordered oxide electroceramics. 
    more » « less
  3. Microwave-induced plasma was used to anneal precursor powders containing five metal oxides with carbon and boron carbide as reducing agents, resulting in high entropy boride ceramics. Measurements of hardness, phase structure, and oxidation resistance were investigated. Plasma annealing for 45 min in the range of 1500–2000 °C led to the formation of predominantly single-phase (Hf, Zr, Ti, Ta, Mo)B2 or (Hf, Zr, Nb, Ta, Mo)B2 hexagonal structures characteristic of high entropy borides. Oxidation resistance for these borides was improved by as much as a factor of ten when compared to conventional commercial diborides. Vickers and nanoindentation hardness measurements show the indentation size effect and were found to be as much as 50% higher than that reported for the same high entropy boride configuration made by other methods, with average values reaching up to 38 GPa (for the highest Vickers load of 200 gf). Density functional theory calculations with a partial occupation method showed that (Hf, Zr, Ti, Ta, Mo)B2 has a higher hardness but a lower entropy forming ability compared to (Hf, Zr, Nb, Ta, Mo)B2, which agrees with the experiments. Overall, these results indicate the strong potential of using microwave-induced plasma as a novel approach for synthesizing high entropy borides. 
    more » « less
  4. The electrical properties of the entropy stabilized oxides: Zr6Nb2O17, Zr6Ta2O17, Hf6Nb2O17and Hf6Ta2O17were characterized. The results and the electrical properties of the products (i.e. ZrO2, HfO2, Nb2O5and Ta2O5) led us to hypothesize the A6B2O17family is a series of mixed ionic-electronic conductors. Conductivity measurements in varying oxygen partial pressure were performed on A6Nb2O17and A6Ta2O17.The results indicate that electrons are involved in conduction in A6Nb2O17while holes play a role in conduction of A6Ta2O17. Between 900 °C–950 °C, the charge transport in the A6B2O17system increases in Ar atmosphere. A combination of DTA/DSC and in situ high temperature X-ray diffraction was performed to identify a potential mechanism for this increase. In-situ high temperature X-ray diffraction in Ar does not show any phase transformation. Based on this, it is hypothesized that a change in the oxygen sub-lattice is the cause for the shift in high temperature conduction above 900 °C–950 °C. This could be:(i)Nb(Ta)4+- oxygen vacancy associate formation/dissociation,(ii)formation of oxygen/oxygen vacancy complexes(iii)ordering/disordering of oxygen vacancies and/or(iv)oxygen-based superstructure commensurate or incommensurate transitions. In-situ high temperature neutron diffraction up to 1050 °C is required to help elucidate the origins of this large increase in conductivity. 
    more » « less
  5. The search for high-temperature superconductivity among pressure-stabilized hydrides has received great interest since theory-directed clathrate hydrides, such as CaH6, YH6, YH9, and LaH10, were synthesized and shown to exhibit a superconducting critical temperature (Tc) above 200 K. However, further tuning the superconductivity and stability of these prominent hydrides to enhance their applicability remains a significant challenge. Here, we take the sodalite-like clathrate prototype MH6 (M = Ca, Y, etc.) as an example to investigate the stability and superconductivity of multicomponent metal hydrides containing four different metal atoms for each structure. High-throughput simulations of 1820 ABCDH24 quinary hydrides with initial symmetry of F4" 3m, where A, B, C, and D represent different metal atoms were performed. The calculations reveal 119 structures that are dynamically stable at 300 GPa and 67 structures exhibit superconductivity exceeding 200 K, and 20 are found to have Tcs above 260 K. Notable among these quinary alloy hydrides, (Na,Zr,Mg,Hf)H6 is predicted to have a Tc approaching room temperature at 250 GPa. Both configurational and vibrational entropy play important roles in stabilizing these alloy structures. (Na,Y,Zr,Hf)H6, (Mg,Zr,Sc,Y)H6, and (Mg,Hf,Ca,Zr)H6 were computed to be thermodynamically stable, making them promising candidates for experimental synthesis. These quinary superconducting hydrides may facilitate realization of very high-temperature superconductors that are stable over a broader range of conditions than those found for binary or ternary systems. 
    more » « less