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Synthesis of Layered Gold Tellurides AuSbTe and Au 2 Te 3 and Their Semiconducting and Metallic Behavior

Pappas, Emma A. [Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)] (ORCID:0009000324303460)·Zhang, Rong [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Science (SIMES); Stanford Univ., CA (United States)]·Peng, Cheng [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Science (SIMES)]·Busch, Robert T. [Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)]·Zuo, Jian-Min [Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000251513370)·Devereaux, Thomas P. [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Science (SIMES); Stanford Univ., CA (United States)]·Shoemaker, Daniel P. [Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000336507551)
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Abstract

Previous studies on natural samples of pampaloite (AuSbTe) revealed the crystal structure of a potentially cleavable and/or exfoliable material, while studies on natural and synthetic montbrayite (Sb-containing Au 2 Te 3 ) claimed various chemical compositions for this low-symmetry compound. Few investigations of synthetic samples have been reported for both materials, leaving much of their chemical, thermal, and electronic characteristics unknown. Here, in this study, we investigate the stability, electronic properties, and synthesis of the gold antimony tellurides AuSbTe and Au 1.9 Sb 0.46 Te 2.64 (montbrayite). Differential thermal analysis and in situ powder X-ray diffraction revealed that AuSbTe is incongruently melting, while Au 1.9 Sb 0.46 Te 2.64 is congruently melting. Calculations of the band structures and four-point resistivity measurements showed that AuSbTe is a semiconductor and Au 1.9 Sb 0.46 Te 2.64 a metal. Various synthesis attempts confirmed the limited stable chemical composition of Au 1.9 Sb 0.46 Te 2.64 , identified successful methods to synthesize both compounds, and highlighted the challenges associated with single-crystal synthesis of AuSbTe.

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Pappas, Emma A. [Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)] (ORCID:0009000324303460), Zhang, Rong [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Science (SIMES); Stanford Univ., CA (United States)], Peng, Cheng [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Science (SIMES)], Busch, Robert T. [Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)], Zuo, Jian-Min [Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000251513370), Devereaux, Thomas P. [SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States). Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Science (SIMES); Stanford Univ., CA (United States)], Shoemaker, Daniel P. [Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)] (ORCID:0000000336507551). 2025-01-22. Synthesis of Layered Gold Tellurides AuSbTe and Au 2 Te 3 and Their Semiconducting and Metallic Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.inorgchem.4c04625

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