Interest in inorganic ternary nitride materials has grown rapidly over the past few decades, as their diverse chemistries and structures make them appealing for a variety of applications. Due to synthetic challenges posed by the stability of N 2 , the number of predicted nitride compounds dwarfs the number that has been synthesized, offering a breadth of opportunity for exploration. This review summarizes the fundamental properties and structural chemistry of ternary nitrides, leveraging metastability and the impact of nitrogen chemical potential. A discussion of prevalent defects, both detrimental and beneficial, is followed by a survey of synthesis techniques and their interplay with metastability. Throughout the review, we highlight applications (such as solid-state lighting, electrochemical energy storage, and electronic devices) in which ternary nitrides show particular promise.
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This content will become publicly available on May 7, 2025
Metastable structures of cation vacancies in semiconducting oxides
The observed metastable characteristics of cation vacancies in Ga2O3 have prompted a wider search for such systems. In this Perspective, we consider a number of defect systems as candidates for metastability. Some of these are already known to have this property, while for others, this suggestion is new. The examples discussed here are but a sampling of a huge number of systems, and these are used to emphasize that the metastability of defect structures is both common and important; it may yield (for example) split vacancy equilibrium configurations and, hence, should be considered in developing defect models and in analyzing their properties.
more » « less- Award ID(s):
- 1901563
- PAR ID:
- 10514093
- Publisher / Repository:
- AIP Publishing
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Journal of Applied Physics
- Volume:
- 135
- Issue:
- 17
- ISSN:
- 0021-8979
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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