scholarly journals Constructing Stable and Potentially High-Performance Hybrid Organic-Inorganic Perovskites with “Unstable” Cations

Research ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Qing Yang ◽  
Menghao Wu ◽  
Xiao Cheng Zeng

A new family of functional hybrid organic-inorganic perovskites (HOIPs) is theoretically designed based on the following chemical insights: when a proton is adhered to molecules like water or ethanol, the newly formed larger-sized cations (e.g., H5O2+, C2H5OH2+, and CH3SH+) entail low electron affinities mimicking superalkalis; they are conjugated acids of weak bases that cannot survive in solution, while their chemistry behavior in the HOIP frameworks, however, may be markedly different due to greatly enhanced cohesive energies of the proton, which facilitate the formation of new HOIPs. First-principles computations show that the putative formation reactions for these newly designed HOIPs typically release much more energy compared with the prevailing HOIP MAPbI3, suggesting the likelihood of facile solution-based fabrications, while the suppression of reverse formation suggests that the humidity stability may be markedly enhanced. During their formations, halide acids are unlikely to react with ethanol or methanethiol without the presence of metal halides, a condition further favoring their stability. The proposed structure of (H5O2)PbI3 may also clarify the origin of the long-speculated existence of HPbI3. Importantly, density functional theory computations suggest that many of these HOIPs possess not only direct bandgaps with values within the optimal range for solar light absorbing but also more desirable optical absorption spectra than that of MAPbI3, where their ferroelectric polarizations also benefit photovoltaics. The stability and photovoltaic efficiency may be even further improved for the newly designed two-dimensional (2D) HOIPs and 2D/3D hybrid HOIP structures.

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henrik Pedersen ◽  
Björn Alling ◽  
Hans Högberg ◽  
Annop Ektarawong

Thin films of boron nitride (BN), particularly the sp<sup>2</sup>-hybridized polytypes hexagonal BN (h-BN) and rhombohedral BN (r-BN) are interesting for several electronic applications given band gaps in the UV. They are typically deposited close to thermal equilibrium by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) at temperatures and pressures in the regions 1400-1800 K and 1000-10000 Pa, respectively. In this letter, we use van der Waals corrected density functional theory and thermodynamic stability calculations to determine the stability of r-BN and compare it to that of h-BN as well as to cubic BN and wurtzitic BN. We find that r-BN is the stable sp<sup>2</sup>-hybridized phase at CVD conditions, while h-BN is metastable. Thus, our calculations suggest that thin films of h-BN must be deposited far from thermal equilibrium.


Author(s):  
Nilanjan Roy ◽  
Sucharita Giri ◽  
Harshit ◽  
Partha P. Jana

Abstract The site preference and atomic ordering of the ternary Rh5Ga2As have been investigated using first-principles density functional theory (DFT). An interesting atomic ordering of two neighboring elements Ga and As reported in the structure of Rh5Ga2As by X-ray diffraction data only is confirmed by first-principles total-energy calculations. The previously reported experimental model with Ga/As ordering is indeed the most stable in the structure of Rh5Ga2As. The calculation detected that there is an obvious trend concerning the influence of the heteroatomic Rh–Ga/As contacts on the calculated total energy. Interestingly, the orderly distribution of As and Ga that is found in the binary GaAs (Zinc-blende structure type), retained to ternary Rh5Ga2As. The density of states (DOS) and Crystal Orbital Hamiltonian Population (COHP) are calculated to enlighten the stability and bonding characteristics in the structure of Rh5Ga2As. The bonding analysis also confirms that Rh–Ga/As short contacts are the major driving force towards the overall stability of the compound.


RSC Advances ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (38) ◽  
pp. 23477-23490
Author(s):  
Yonggang Wu ◽  
Jihua Zhang ◽  
Bingwei Long ◽  
Hong Zhang

The ZnWO4 (010) surface termination stability is studied using a density functional theory-based thermodynamic approach. The stability phase diagram shows that O-Zn, DL-W, and DL-Zn terminations of ZnWO4 (010) can be stabilized.


2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (33) ◽  
pp. 1750310 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jia-Ning Li ◽  
San-Lue Hu ◽  
Hao-Yu Dong ◽  
Xiao-Ying Xu ◽  
Jia-Fu Wang ◽  
...  

Under the tuning of an external electric field, the variation of the geometric structures and the band gaps of the wurtzite semiconductors ZnS, ZnO, BeO, AlN, SiC and GaN have been investigated by the first-principles method based on density functional theory. The stability, density of states, band structures and the charge distribution have been analyzed under the electric field along (001) and (00[Formula: see text]) directions. Furthermore, the corresponding results have been compared without the electric field. According to our calculation, we find that the magnitude and the direction of the electric field have a great influence on the electronic structures of the wurtzite materials we mentioned above, which induce a phase transition from semiconductor to metal under a certain electric field. Therefore, we can regulate their physical properties of this type of semiconductor materials by tuning the magnitude and the direction of the electric field.


MRS Advances ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (44-45) ◽  
pp. 2419-2429 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. G. Diale ◽  
R. Modiba ◽  
P. E. Ngoepe ◽  
H. R. Chauke

ABSTRACTThe stability of the Ti50Pd50-xRux alloy was investigated using first-principles density functional theory within the plane-wave pseudopotential method. Firstly, the Ti50Pd50 gave equilibrium lattice parameter and lowest heats of formation in better agreement with experimental data to within 3%. The heat of formation decreases with an increase in Ru concentration, consistent with the trend of the density of states which is lowered at the Fermi level as Ru content is increased which suggests stability. It was also found that from the calculated elastic constants the structures showed positive shear modulus above 20 at. % Ru, condition of stability. Furthermore, the addition of Ru was found to strengthen the Ti50Pd50-xRux system at higher concentrations. The thermal coefficients of linear expansion for the Ti50Pd31.25Ru18. 75 are higher at low temperature, and that the TiPd-Ru system tends to expand more at low content of 18.75 at. % Ru than at higher content. Partial substitution of Pd with Ru was found more effective as a strengthening element and may enhance the martensitic transformation temperature of the Ti50Pd50 alloy.


2000 ◽  
Vol 633 ◽  
Author(s):  
Solange B. Fagan ◽  
Daniela S. Sartor ◽  
R. Mota ◽  
R. J. Baierle ◽  
Antônio J. R. da Silva ◽  
...  

AbstractUsing two different approaches: Monte Carlo simulations with Tersoff empirical potential and first principles calculations, the energetics and the structural properties of double-walled carbon and silicon nanotubes are investigated. Through Tersoff potential, the changes on cohesive energies for the Si and C systems are determined for several outer tubules for a fixed inner tube. Adopting first principles calculations, based on density functional theory, the trends, in terms of the cohesive energies, are compared with the corresponding obtained results using Tersoff empirical potential. The structures, specially of the most stable double-walled nanotubes, are discussed.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 4008
Author(s):  
Mahdi Faghihnasiri ◽  
Vahid Najafi ◽  
Farzaneh Shayeganfar ◽  
Ali Ramazani

Current research aims to investigate the mechanical properties of rare earth perovskite ferrites (RFeO3, R = La, Eu, Gd) utilizing density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Using the revised Perdew–Burke–Ernzerhof approximation for solids (PBEsol) approximation, the elastic constants, bulk, Young’s, and shear modulus, Poisson’s ratio, and anisotropic properties are calculated. The quantum theory of atoms in molecules (QTAIM) is employed to analyze the stability of chemical bonds in the structures subjected to an external loading. Based on these calculations, Fe-O and R-O bonds can be considered as nearly ionic, which is due to the large difference in electronegativity of R and Fe with O. Additionally, our results reveal that the charge density values of the Fe-O bonds in both structures remain largely outside of the ionic range. Finally, the mechanical response of LaFeO3, EuFeO3, and GdFeO3 compounds to various cubic strains is investigated. The results show that in RFeO3 by increasing the radius of the lanthanide atom, the mechanical properties of the material including Young’s and bulk modulus increase.


2009 ◽  
Vol 79-82 ◽  
pp. 1249-1252 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qing Xun Zhao ◽  
Bo Geng ◽  
Li Guan ◽  
Qiang Li ◽  
Ji Kui Ma ◽  
...  

Density functional theory plane-wave pseudopotential with the general gradient approximation (GGA) was used to investigate electronic structural properties and the bulk spontaneous polarization (Ps) of PbZr0.4Ti0.6O3. It is found that there are strong hybridizations between Ti 3d states or Zr 4d states and O 2p states, which can reduce short-range repulsion in atoms and enhance the stability of the ferroelectric phase of PbZr0.4Ti0.6O3. Compared with cubic ideal structure, the calculated internal electronic structural data indicate that the slightly distorted O6 octahedrons around the central Ti and Zr atoms change to the Ti-O5 and Zr-O5 pyramid in the optimized structure, respectively. The major contribution to the spontaneous polarization along [001] comes from the stronger interaction along the c axis between the Ti and O rather than the Zr and O ions. The Pb atom’s relative displacement of oxygen octahedral implies that the Pb-O bonding interaction is also a key factor impacting the ferroelectricity of PbZr0.4Ti0.6O3. A theoretical spontaneous polarization of 0.78 C/m2 was computed in the tetragonal PbZr0.4Ti0.6O3 along [001] direction, consistent with the single crystal experimental data.


2011 ◽  
Vol 10 (03) ◽  
pp. 533-538 ◽  
Author(s):  
CHUN-MEI LIU ◽  
NIAN-HUA LIU ◽  
ZHENG-FANG LIU ◽  
LI-PING AN

By using the first-principles density functional theory combining with the nonequilibrium Green’s function techniques, we investigate the electronic structure and the spin-polarization-dependent electronic transport of zigzag graphene nanoribbons (ZGNR) with a defect of vacancy. The total energy of the graphene ribbons corresponding to different vacancy locations is calculated to analyze the stability of the structures. It is found that the existence of a vacancy causes a significant change in the electronic band gap. The electronic band and the transport become spin-polarization-dependent. The calculated I–V characteristic shows that the spin-polarization-dependent effect can be enhanced under a finite bias voltage.


Materials ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 1805
Author(s):  
Zhilue Wang ◽  
Shoujiang Qu ◽  
Hongping Xiang ◽  
Zhangzhen He ◽  
Jun Shen

The stability, physical properties, and electronic structures of Cr(NCN)2 were studied using density functional theory with explicit electronic correlation (GGA+U). The calculated results indicate that Cr(NCN)2 is a ferromagnetic and half-metal, both thermodynamically and elastically stable. A comparative study on the electronic structures of Cr(NCN)2 and CrO2 shows that the Cr atoms in both compounds are in one crystallographically equivalent site, with an ideal 4+ valence state. In CrO2, the Cr atoms at the corner and center sites have different magnetic moments and orbital occupancies, moreover, there is a large difference between the intra- (12.1 meV) and inter-chain (31.2 meV) magnetic couplings, which is significantly weakened by C atoms in Cr(NCN)2.


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