Surperhard monoclinic BC6N allotropes:First-principles investigations

Via structural searching methodology and first-principles calculations, we predicted two new BC6N allotropes, a Ccentered monoclinic BC6N（Cm-BC6N） and a primitive-centered monoclinic BC6N（Pm-BC6N）.The lattice vibrations,elastic properties, ideal strength, theoretical hardness, and electronic structure of the predicted BC6N were investigated systematically.Our results reveal that Cm-BC6N is more favorable energetically than graphite-like g-BC6N above 20.6 GPa,which is lower than the transition pressures of r-BC6N, t-BC6N, and Pm-BC6N.Both Cm-BC6N and Pm-BC6N are indirect semiconductors with band gaps of 2.66 eV and 0.36 eV, respectively.Cm-BC6N exhibits the excellent ideal shear strength of 53.9 GPa in（011）■, much greater than that of Pm-BC6N（25.0 GPa in（010）[101] shear direction）, and Cm-BC6N shows a much lower anisotropy in shear strength than Pm-BC6N.The Vickers hardness of Cm-BC6N is estimated to be above 80 GPa, which is more outstanding than those of t-BC6N and r-BC6N.

Chemical Bond Properties and Isomer Shifts of Tl2Ba2Ca2Cu3O10

Tl2Ba2Ca2Cu3O10 was reported to be a superconductor with a highest transition temperature of 125 K among the homologous series of Tl2Ba2Can-1CunO2n＋4. The direct information on the Cu ion site at the atomic level is important for elucidating the superconductivity mechanism. The local bond properties of Tl2Ba2Ca2Cu3O10 were studied using the average band-gap model. The calculated results show that the covalency of Cu（1）-O bond is 0.561, and the average covalency of Cu（2）-O is 0.296. Mossbauer isomer shifts of 57Fe in Tl2Ba2Ca2Cu3O10 were calculated using the chemical surrounding factor, defined by covalency and electronic polarizability. It is verified that for lower doping, Fe substitute the Cu at the Cu （1） site in forms of Fe^3＋ and Fe^4＋; for higher doping, Fe^3＋ and Fe^4＋ ion occupies Cu（1） and Cu（2） site respectively. The studies show that the determination of the correspondence between spectrum components and actual copper sites occupied by MSssbauer nucleus was made easier with the aid of the calculation results of the chemical bond parameters.

An Orthorhombic Phase of Superhard o-BC_4N

A potential superhard o-BC_4 N with Imm2 space group is identified by ab initio evolutionary methodology using CALYPSO code. The structural, electronic and mechanical properties of o-BC_4N are investigated. The elastic calculations indicate that o-BC_4N is mechanically stable. The phonon dispersions imply that this phase is dynamically stable under ambient conditions. The structure of o-BC_4N is more energetically favorable than o-BC_4N above the pressure of 25.1 GPa. Here o-BC_4N is a semiconductor with an indirect band gap of about 3.95 eV, and the structure is highly incompressible with a bulk modulus of 396.3 GPa and shear modulus of 456.0 GPa. The mechanical failure mode of o-BC_4N is dominated by the shear type. The calculated peak stress of 58.5 GPa in the(100)[001] shear direction sets an upper bound for its ideal strength. The Vickers hardness of o-BC_4N reaches 78.7 GPa, which is greater than that of t-BC_4N and bc-BC_4N proposed recently, confirming that o-BC_4N is a potential superhard material.

Multiscale control of MnO_(2) growth via[WO_(6)]-perturbed[MnO_(6)]assembly toward a favorable balance between capacitance and rate performance

Although pseudocapacitive manganese dioxide(MnO_(2))integrates the high-power merit of carbonaceous materials with the high-energy merit of battery-type materials,it still has a long way to go in achieving a more satisfactory balance of higher energy and power density,and in decoupling the relationship of structural characteristics with energy storage performance.To realize such goals,a bottom-up[WO_(6)]-perturbed[MnO_(6)]assembly strategy has been developed here due to their similar structure,yet mismatched lattice parameters.This facile protocol is capable of finely controlling the morphology and crystal structure of MnO_(2)by adjusting its internal[WO_(6)]concentration.Therefore,the as-prepared W_xMnO_(2)is treated as an ideal platform to scrutinize the correlations of the structure with the energy storage performance.The operando Raman spectra and finite element analysis have fully demonstrated the superiority of the locally ordered defects-enriched structure of W_(0.02)-MnO_(2),which could reach a favorable balance between the ion diffusion equilibrium time and the number of active sites.As a result,the W_(0.02)-MnO_(2)is able to deliver a high capacitance of 292 F·g^(-1)at a current density of 1 A·g^(-1)and a remarkable rate performance with a 60%capacity retention at a current density of 50 A·g^(-1).The further unveiled structure-performance relationship provides a guideline for the design of better pseudocapacitive energy storage devices.