Weak Interactions under Pressure: hp‐CuBi and Its Analogues

• Published in: Angewandte Chemie International Edition 2017-05, Vol.56 (20), p.5620-5624
• Main Authors: Guo, Kai, Akselrud, Lev, Bobnar, Matej, Burkhardt, Ulrich, Schmidt, Marcus, Zhao, Jing‐Tai, Schwarz, Ulrich, Grin, Yuri
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Bismuth; Charge transfer; Chemical bonds; Chemical reactions; Copper; Electrical conductivity; Electrical resistivity; Heavy metals; high-pressure high-temperature synthesis; nonpolar compounds; Pressure; Slabs; Superconductivity; Temperature effects; Transition metals
• ISSN: 1433-7851; 1521-3773
• DOI: 10.1002/anie.201700712

The metastable binary compound hp‐CuBi was obtained from the direct chemical reaction between copper and bismuth at a pressure of 5 GPa and a temperature of 720 K. The atomic arrangement comprises slabs of puckered Cu layers sandwiched between Bi planes. The QTAIM charges calculated for compounds of bismuth with transition metals reveal negligible charge transfer for hp‐CuBi. Analysis of the chemical bonding with position‐space techniques discloses multicenter interactions within the Bi‐Cu‐Bi slabs and lone‐pair interactions of the van der Waals type between these entities. hp‐CuBi exhibits metal‐type electrical conductivity with superconductivity below Tc=1.3 K. The metastable binary compound hp‐CuBi was prepared from copper and bismuth at 5 GPa and 720 K. The atomic arrangement consists of slabs of puckered Cu layers sandwiched between Bi planes. Analysis of the chemical bonding reveals multicenter interactions within and van der Waals type interactions between the slabs. The new compound is a superconductor below Tc=1.3 K.