350
Views
12
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Original Articles

Characterization of a new Nb–silicide (δ-Nb11Si4) in Nb–Si binary systems

, , &
Pages 2557-2568 | Received 06 May 2009, Accepted 13 Jan 2010, Published online: 28 Apr 2010
 

Abstract

A new Nb–silicide, δ-Nb11Si4, identified as a second phase precipitated from a Nb–Si solid solution, was characterized by combining crystallographic analysis with first-principles calculations. The crystal structure was determined as a body-centered orthorhombic system with space group Immm using transmission electron microscope (TEM). Based on the crystallographic relationship between the δ and Nb phases, // {200}Nb and // ⟨001⟩Nb, eight possible unit cells were proposed, which were optimized by first-principles calculations. By analyzing the experimental and calculated data, we obtained the final unit cell of the δ phase, which was confirmed by high-resolution TEM images. In addition, density of states and electron density difference of δ-Nb11Si4 revealed that the δ structure was in a metastable state at low temperature because not all the bonding states were filled.

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and Special Funds for the Major State Basic Research Projects of China Grant No. 2006CB600905.

Notes

Note

1. See details in supplementary document.

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.