Structural signature and transition dynamics of Sb2Te3 melt upon fast cooling

Thumbnail Image
Date
2018-01-01
Authors
Guo, Y. R.
Dong, F.
Qiao, C.
Wang, J. J.
Wang, S. Y.
Xu, Ming
Zheng, Y. X.
Zhang, R. J.
Chen, L. Y.
Wang, Cai-Zhuang
Major Professor
Advisor
Committee Member
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Authors
Research Projects
Organizational Units
Organizational Unit
Organizational Unit
Physics and Astronomy
Physics and astronomy are basic natural sciences which attempt to describe and provide an understanding of both our world and our universe. Physics serves as the underpinning of many different disciplines including the other natural sciences and technological areas.
Journal Issue
Is Version Of
Versions
Series
Department
Ames National LaboratoryPhysics and Astronomy
Abstract

Crystalline Sb2Te3 is widely studied due to its important applications in memory materials and topological insulators. The liquid and amorphous structures of this compound as well as the dynamics upon quenching, however, are yet to be fully understood. In this work, we have systematically studied the dynamical properties and local structure of Sb2Te3 at different temperatures using ab initio molecular dynamics simulations. The calculated structure factors agree well with the experimental results. The atomic number density and mean-squared displacement as a function of temperature clearly indicate three states as the temperature decreases, namely, melt, undercooled liquid and glass state, respectively. By analyzing the chemical environments and bond-angle distribution functions, we demonstrate that the most probable short-range motifs in the Sb2Te3 system are defective octahedrons, and they are connected with each other via four-fold rings. This interesting structural feature may be responsible for the high fragility and easy phase transition upon glass forming that is applied in memory devices.

Comments
Description
Keywords
Citation
DOI
Subject Categories
Copyright
Collections