A 105K superconductor with three Cu---O layers in the bismuth cuprate system : Bi1.5Pb0.5Ca2.5Sr1.5Cu3O10+delta

The n=3 member of the Bi1.5Pb0.5 (Ca, Sr) n+1CunO2n+4+δ system has been prepared and characterized by X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy. High-Tc superconductivity in the n=3 member has been established by resistivity, AC susceptibility and microwave absorption measurements. It has a Tc of not, vert, similar 105K compared to a Tc of not, vert, similar 82K of the corresponding n=2 member.

Synthesis and structure of some interesting oxides of bismuth

Synthesis and structures of several new oxides containing bismuth are described. Three types of structures are common among the multinary oxides containing trivalent bismuth. They are the sillenite structure of γ-Bi2O3, the layered perovskite structure of Aurivillius phases and the pyrochlore structure. The influence of Bi3+∶6s 2 lone pair electrons is seen in all the three structures. In transition metal oxides containing trivalent bismuth,d o cations (Ti4+, Nb5+, W6+) stabilize the layered perovskite structure, while cations containing partially-filledd orbitals (V4+, Cr3+, Fe3+) favour pyrochlore-related structures. Ferroelectric distortion ofMO6 octahedra of thed o cations seems to play an important role in stabilizing layered perovskite structures.

Metal-insulator-semiconductor capacitors with bismuth oxide as insulator

Metal-insulator-semiconductor capacitors using aluminum Bi2O3 and silicon have been studied for varactor applications. Reactively sputtered Bi2O3 films which under suitable proportions of oxygen and argon and had high resistivity suitable for device applications showed a dielectric constant of 25. Journal of Applied Physics is copyrighted by The American Institute of Physics.

Intergrowth tungsten bronzes of bismuth

High resolution electron microscopic studies show that bismuth forms intergrowth tungsten bronzes containing varying widths of the WO3 slab and one-tunnel wide HTB strips.

Ternary bismuth oxides Bi26â-xMxO40ay (M = Mg, Al, Co and Ni) related to α - Bi2O3

Reaction of Bi2O3 with MgO, NiO, Co3O4 and Al2O3 gives rise to the corresponding ternary bismuth oxides, Bi18Mg8O36, Bi18Ni8O36, Bi20Co6O39 and Bi24Al2O39. These oxides have the general formula Bi26�xMxO40�y and exhibit BCC structures related to α - Bi2O3. In the first three solids, the metal ions, M, replace bismuth randomly at the octahedral 24r sites (space group 123); in the last case, aluminium ions occupy the tetrahedral 2a sites, the phase being isostructural with Bi24Ge2O40. Starting from Bi2O3 and NiO, orthorhombic Bi2Ni2O5 has also been obtained.

Synthesis, Structural Characterization and Formation Mechanism of Ferroelectric Bismuth Vanadate Nanotubes

We report the synthesis and structural characterization of ferroelectric bismuth vanadate (Bi2VO5.5) (BVO) nanotubes within the nanoporous anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) templates via sol-gel method. The as-prepared BVO nanotubes were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscope (HRTEM) and the stoichiometry of the nanotubes was established by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). Postannealed (675 degrees C for 1 h), BVO nanotubes were a polycrystalline and the XRD studies confirmed the crystal structure to be orthorhombic. The uniformity in diameter and length of the nanotubes as reveled by the TEM and SEM suggested that these were influenced to a guest extent by the thickness and pore diameter of the nanoporous AAO template. EDX analysis demonstrated the formation of stoichiometric Bi2VO5.5 phase. HRTEM confirmed that the obtained BVO nanotubes were made up of nanoparticles of 5-9 nm range. The possible formation mechanism of nanotubes was elucidated.

Bismuth sulfide: A high-capacity anode for sodium-ion batteries

Exploring high-performance anode materials is currently one of the most urgent issues towards practical sodium-ion batteries (SIBs). In this work, Bi2S3 is demonstrated to be a high-capacity anode for SIBs for the first time. The specific capacity of Bi2S3 nanorods achieves up to 658 and 264 mAh g-1 at a current density of 100 and 2000 mA g-1, respectively. A full cell with Na3V2(PO4)3-based cathode is also assembled as a proof of concept and delivers 340 mAh g-1 at 100 mA g-1. The sodium storage mechanism of Bi2S3 is investigated by ex-situ XRD coupled with high-resolution TEM (HRTEM), and it is found that sodium storage is achieved by a combined conversion-intercalation mechanism.

Tetragonal bismuth bilayer: A stable and robust quantum spin hall insulator

Topological insulators (TIs) exhibit novel physics with great promise for new devices, but considerable challenges remain to identify TIs with high structural stability and large nontrivial band gap suitable for practical applications. Here we predict by first-principles calculations a two-dimensional (2D) TI, also known as a quantum spin Hall (QSH) insulator, in a tetragonal bismuth bilayer (TB-Bi) structure that is dynamically and thermally stable based on phonon calculations and finite-temperature molecular dynamics simulations. Density functional theory and tight-binding calculations reveal a band inversion among the Bi-p orbits driven by the strong intrinsic spin-orbit coupling, producing a large nontrivial band gap, which can be effectively tuned by moderate strains. The helical gapless edge states exhibit a linear dispersion with a high Fermi velocity comparable to that of graphene, and the QSHphase remains robust on a NaCl substrate. These remarkable properties place TB-Bi among the most promising 2D TIs for high-speed spintronic devices, and the present results provide insights into the intriguing QSH phenomenon in this new Bi structure and offer guidance for its implementation in potential applications.

Microsphere Bouquets of Bismuth Telluride Nanoplates: Room-Temperature Synthesis and Thermoelectric Properties

We report the synthesis and properties of sphere-shaped microscale aggregates of bismuth telluride nanoplates. We obtain porous microspheres by reducing bismuth chloride and orthotelluric acid with hydrazine in the presence of thioglycolic acid-which serves as the shape-and size-directing agent-followed by room-temperature aging-which promotes nanoplate aggregation. Thin film assemblies of the nanoplate microspheres exhibit n-type behavior due to sulfur doping and a Seebeck coefficient higher than that reported for assemblies of chalcogenide nanostructures. Adaptation of our scalable approach to synthesize and hierarchically assemble nanostructures with controlled doping could be attractive for tailoring novel thermoelectric materials for applications in high-efficiency refrigeration and harvesting electricity from heat.

Organic–inorganic bismuth (III)-based material: A lead-free, air-stable and solution-processable light-absorber beyond organolead perovskites

Methylammonium bismuth (III) iodide single crystals and films have been developed and investigated. We have further presented the first demonstration of using this organic–inorganic bismuth-based material to replace lead/tin-based perovskite materials in solution-processable solar cells. The organic–inorganic bismuth-based material has advantages of non-toxicity, ambient stability, and low-temperature solution-processability, which provides a promising solution to address the toxicity and stability challenges in organolead- and organotin-based perovskite solar cells. We also demonstrated that trivalent metal cation-based organic–inorganic hybrid materials can exhibit photovoltaic effect, which may inspire more research work on developing and applying organic-inorganic hybrid materials beyond divalent metal cations (Pb (II) and Sn (II)) for solar energy applications.

Spectroscopic ellipsometry investigations of the optical properties of manganese doped bismuth vanadate thin films

The optical properties of Bi(2)V(1-x)MnxO(5.5-x) (x=0.05, 0.1, 0.15 and 0.2 at.%) thin films fabricated by pulsed laser deposition on platinized Silicon Substrates were Studied in UV-visible spectral region (1.51-4.17 CV) using spectroscopic ellipsometry. The optical constants and thicknesses of these films have been obtained by fitting the ellipsometric data (Psi and Delta) using a multilayer four-phase model system and a relaxed Lorentz oscillator dispersion relation. The surface roughness and film thickness obtained by spectroscopic ellipsometry were found to be consistent with the results obtained by atomic force and scanning electron microscopy. The refractive index measured at 650 nm does not show any marginal increase with Mn content. Further, the extinction coefficient does not show much decrease with increasing Mn content. An increase in optical band gap energy from 2.52 to 2.77 eV with increasing Mn Content from x = 0.05 to 0.15 was attributed to the increase in oxygen ion vacancy disorder. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The emission spectrum of bismuth monofluoride BiF—‘A’ system

The observation of (A-X) system of BiF has been extended up to λ 5316 and twenty new bands belonging to this system have been recorded. The band heads could be represented by the following equation: {Mathematical expression} Seven other faint bands in the region λ 5316-5492 have also been reported, which, however, could not be classified. By our analysis of the present data and from known thermochemical data it has been deduced that the ground state dissociation energy is, in all probability, around 20000 cm.-1 (∼2·5 ev.) and that the dissociation products are the normal Bi and F atoms. The dissociation energy of the upper state and the correlation rules have been used to show that the dissociation products in the upper state are very likely to be Bi atom in the excited state2D3/2 and F atom in its ground state (2P3/2).

The emission spectrum of bismuth bromide (BiBr)-"A" system

The emission spectrum of bismuth monobromide has been investigated and a vibrational analysis of the A→X system has been made. About 286 bands were recorded in the region λλ 4595–6063 and the isotope effect due to Br79 and Br81 was observed in about 87 bands. A value of 2·74 ev. for the dissociation energy of the excited state has been obtained and arguments have been given to show that the dissociation products in the excited state are Bi(4S3/2) and Br(2P3/2) and that those of the ground state are most probably Bi (4S3/2) and Br (2P1/2) atoms.

Investigations of superconducting bismuth cuprates of the general formula Bi2-xPbx(Ca,Sr,Y)n 1 Cun O2n 4 δ

In the (Bi,Pb)-Sr-Cu-O system we have examined many compositions which are either metallic or semiconducting. In the Bi2-xPbx(Ca, Sr)n+1 Cun O2n+4+δ system, we have established the superconducting properties of the n = 1 to 4 members. The Tc increases from n = 1 to 3 and does not increase further when n = 4. In Bi2Ca1-x,YxSr2Cu2Oy, the Tc decreases with increase in x.

Polarization enhancement in compositionally graded vanadium doped bismuth titanate thin films

Compositionally up and downgraded Bi4-x/3Ti3-xVxO12 (x=0.0, 0.012,0.03, 0.06) thin films were grown on Pt coated silicon substrates by pulsed laser deposition technique. Downgraded fabrication showed improved ferroelectric polarization in comparison to upgraded fabrication. Films deposited at 650 and 700 degrees C showed very large remnant polarization (2P(r)) value of 82 mu C cm(-2), which is comparatively large among all bismuth based thin films reported so far. A mechanism based on vanadium enrich seeded layer formation in the downgraded structure is proposed for the improvement. Moreover, frequency independent behavior (100Hz-5kHz) of the graded films ensures its potential application for various microelectronic devices. (c) 2010 American Institute of Physics. [doi :10.1063/1.3431543].