Isotropic Zero Thermal Expansion and Local Vibrational Dynamics in (Sc,Fe)F3

Feiyu Qin, Jun Chen*, Umut Aydemir, Andrea Sanson, Lu Wang, Zhao Pan, Jiale Xu, Chengjun Sun, Yang Ren, Jinxia Deng, Ranbo Yu, Lei Hu, G. Jeffrey Snyder, Xianran Xing

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

15 Scopus citations

Abstract

Scandium fluoride (ScF3) exhibits a pronounced negative thermal expansion (NTE), which can be suppressed and ultimately transformed into an isotropic zero thermal expansion (ZTE) by partially substituting Sc with Fe in (Sc0.8Fe0.2)F3 (Fe20). The latter displays a rather small coefficient of thermal expansion of -0.17 × 10-6/K from 300 to 700 K. Synchrotron X-ray and neutron pair distribution functions confirm that the Sc/Fe-F bond has positive thermal expansion (PTE). Local vibrational dynamics based on extended X-ray absorption fine structure indicates a decreased anisotropy of relative vibration in the Sc/Fe-F bond. Combined analysis proposes a delicate balance between the counteracting effects of the chemical bond PTE and NTE from transverse vibration. The present study extends the scope of isotropic ZTE compounds and, more significantly, provides a complete local vibrational dynamics to shed light on the ZTE mechanism in chemically tailored NTE compounds.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)10840-10843
Number of pages4
JournalInorganic chemistry
Volume56
Issue number18
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 18 2017

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Physical and Theoretical Chemistry
  • Inorganic Chemistry

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