Synthesis, crystal and electronic structures of La₃Cr₂N₆

François Cheviré (1) , Chinmoy Ranjan (1) , Francis J. Disalvo (1)

1 Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology

The rare earth-transition metal ternary nitride La₃Cr₂N₆ was synthesized from the elements and an excess of sodium and gallium at 900°C in a sealed niobium tube. This compound crystallizes in the tetragonal space group I4/mmm (No. 139) with with a=3.8525(5)Å and c=20.508(4)Å. It is isostructural with the recently discovered ternary nitrides R₃M₂N₆ (R=La, Ce or Pr; M=V, Nb or Ta) and with the high Tc superconducting copper oxide La_2-xSr_xCaCu₂O₆. Band structure calculations using density functional theory show that La₃Cr₂N₆ contains CrN₂ conducting layers.

Mots clés: B. Crystal growth; C. Crystal structure and symmetry; B. Chemical synthesis

Domaines: Matériaux

François Cheviré, Chinmoy Ranjan, Francis J. Disalvo. Synthesis, crystal and electronic structures of La₃Cr₂N₆. Solid State Communications, 2009, 149 (7-8), pp.273-276. ⟨10.1016/j.ssc.2008.12.004⟩. ⟨hal-00862142⟩