Reduction in kelp forests altered sea otter and sea urchin behavior, restructuring mechanisms of ecosystem control.
Image credit: Michael Langhans (photographer).
Contributed by Russell J. Hemley, May 5, 2017 (sent for review March 20, 2017; reviewed by Panchapakesan Ganesh, Jeffrey M. McMahon, and Dimitrios Papaconstantopoulos)
Significance
Theoretical predictions and subsequent experimental observations of high-temperature superconductivity in dense hydrogen-rich compounds have reinvigorated the field of superconductivity. A systematic computational study of the hydrides of lanthanum and yttrium over a wide composition range reveals hydrogen-rich structures with intriguing electronic properties under pressure. Electron–phonon coupling calculations predict the existence of new superconducting phases, some exhibiting superconductivity in the range of room temperature. Moreover, the calculated stabilities indicate the materials could be synthesized at pressures that are currently accessible in the laboratory. The results open the prospect for the design, synthesis, and recovery of new high-temperature superconductors with potential practical applications.
Abstract
A systematic structure search in the La–H and Y–H systems under pressure reveals some hydrogen-rich structures with intriguing electronic properties. For example, LaH10 is found to adopt a sodalite-like face-centered cubic (fcc) structure, stable above 200 GPa, and LaH8 a C2/m space group structure. Phonon calculations indicate both are dynamically stable; electron phonon calculations coupled to Bardeen–Cooper–Schrieffer (BCS) arguments indicate they might be high-Tc superconductors. In particular, the superconducting transition temperature Tc calculated for LaH10 is 274–286 K at 210 GPa. Similar calculations for the Y–H system predict stability of the sodalite-like fcc YH10 and a Tc above room temperature, reaching 305–326 K at 250 GPa. The study suggests that dense hydrides consisting of these and related hydrogen polyhedral networks may represent new classes of potential very high-temperature superconductors.
Footnotes
- ↵1To whom correspondence should be addressed. Email: rhemley{at}gwu.edu.
Author contributions: H.L. and R.J.H. designed research; H.L., I.I.N., R.H., N.W.A., and R.J.H. analyzed data; and H.L., I.I.N., R.H., N.W.A., and R.J.H. wrote the paper.
Reviewers: P.G., Oak Ridge National Laboratory; J.M.M., Washington State University; and D.P., George Mason University.
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
This article contains supporting information online at www.pnas.org/lookup/suppl/doi:10.1073/pnas.1704505114/-/DCSupplemental.
High-Tc superconductivity in La and Y hydrides
Article Classifications
- Physical Sciences
- Physics
Sign up for Article Alerts
Jump to section
You May Also be Interested in
SpillOver, a web application that ranks wildlife-origin viruses based on their risk of spreading to humans.
Image credit: Pixabay/dustinthewind.
Amazonian parrots imported to Atacama Desert communities were raised for colorful feathers.
Image credit: Calogero M. Santoro and José M. Capriles.
Amid encouraging signs, researchers and activists are struggling to make progress in the face of agricultural inputs, climate change, and relentless development.
Image credit: Shutterstock/Ladinn.
Using a series of simple video games, cognitive neuroscientists showed that some norms are easier to change than others.
Image credit: Shutterstock/qwret.