All-temperature barocaloric effects at pressure-induced phase transitions

Zhao, X.*; Zhang, Z.*; Hattori, Takanori; Wang, J.*; Li, L.*; Jia, Y.*; Li, W.*; Xue, J.*; Fan, X.*; Song, R.*; et al.

Nature Communications (Internet), 16, p.7713_1 - 7713_8, 2025/08

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-63068-z

Caloric effects usually occur in the vicinity of solid-state phase transitions with a limited refrigeration temperature span. Here, we introduce and realize an unprecedented concept -all temperature barocaloric effect, i.e., a remarkable barocaloric effect in KPF across an exceptionally wide temperature span, from 77.5 to 300 K and potentially down to 4 K, covering typical room temperature, liquid nitrogen, liquid hydrogen, and liquid helium refrigeration regions. The directly measured barocaloric adiabatic temperature change reaches 12 K at room temperature and 2.5 K at 77.5 K upon the release of a 250 MPa pressure. This effect is attributed to a persistent phase transition to a rhombohedral high pressure phases. We depict the thermodynamic energy landscape to account for the structural instability. This unique all-temperature barocaloric effect presents a novel approach to highly applicable solid-state refrigeration technology, transcending the conventional multi-stage scenario.

The Influence of structural dynamics in two-dimensional hybrid organic-inorganic perovskites on their photoluminescence efficiency; Neutron scattering analysis

Rajeev, H. S.*; Hu, X.*; Chen, W.-L.*; Zhang, D.*; Chen, T.*; Kofu, Maiko*; Kajimoto, Ryoichi; Nakamura, Mitsutaka; Chen, A. Z.*; Johnson, G. C.*; et al.

Journal of the Physical Society of Japan, 94(3), p.034602_1 - 034602_14, 2025/03

https://doi.org/10.7566/JPSJ.94.034602

Origin of the unique mechanical properties of refractory high-entropy alloys

Tsuru, Tomohito; Han, S.*; Chen, Z.*; Lobzenko, I.; Inui, Haruyuki*

Materia, 63(10), p.695 - 702, 2024/10

https://doi.org/10.2320/materia.63.695

VNbMoTaW, a typical high-entropy alloy with the BCC phase, is composed of metals with high melting points, and is called a reflectory high-entropy alloy. TiZrNbTaHf, which are also known as typical high-entropy alloys with the BCC phase, are also single phase and have a melting point 500 C lower than that of VNbMoTaW, but are known to exhibit excellent ductility at low temperatures below room temperature. Understanding what properties govern the mechanical properties is essential for designing alloys such as high-temperature resistant alloys with excellent high-temperature strength and low-temperature ductility. Given that both VNbMoTaW and TiZrNbTaHf are single-phase alloys, the key lies in the relationship between the constituent elements and the properties underlying the deformation, such as dislocations. This paper presents the results of the differences in mechanical properties of these two refractory high-entropy alloys, using experimental, theoretical, and computer simulations to investigate the key factors controlling ductility and strength.

Dual nanoprecipitation and nanoscale chemical heterogeneity in a secondary hardening steel for ultrahigh strength and large uniform elongation

Wang, S.*; Wang, J.*; Zhang, S.*; Wei, D.*; Chen, Y.*; Rong, X.*; Gong, W.; Harjo, S.; Liu, X.*; Jiao, Z.*; et al.

Journal of Materials Science & Technology, 185, p.245 - 258, 2024/06

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmst.2023.10.048

Onset of collectivity for argon isotopes close to

Linh, B. D.*; Corsi, A.*; Gillibert, A.*; Obertelli, A.*; Doornenbal, P.*; Barbieri, C.*; Duguet, T.*; Gmez-Ramos, M.*; Holt, J. D.*; Hu, B. S.*; et al.

Physical Review C, 109(3), p.034312_1 - 034312_15, 2024/03

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.109.034312

no abstracts in English

Intrinsic factors responsible for brittle versus ductile nature of refractory high-entropy alloys

Tsuru, Tomohito; Han, S.*; Matsuura, Shutaro*; Chen, Z.*; Kishida, Kyosuke*; Lobzenko, I.; Rao, S.*; Woodward, C.*; George, E.*; Inui, Haruyuki*

Nature Communications (Internet), 15, p.1706_1 - 1706_10, 2024/02

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-45639-8

Refractory high-entropy alloys (RHEAs) have attracted attention because of their potential for use in ultrahigh-temperature applications. Unfortunately, their body-centered-cubic (BCC) crystal structures make them more brittle than the ductile and fracture-resistant face-centered-cubic (FCC) HEAs. RHEAs also display significantly lower creep strengths than a leading Ni-base superalloy and its FCC matrix. To overcome these drawbacks and develop RHEAs into viable structural materials, improved fundamental understanding is needed of factors that control strength and ductility. Here we investigate two model RHEAs, TiZrHfNbTa and VNbMoTaW, and show that the former is plastically compressible down to 77 K, whereas the latter is not below 298 K. We find that hexagonal close-packed (HCP) elements in TiZrHfNbTa lower its dislocation core energy, increase its lattice distortion, and lower its shear modulus relative to VNbMoTaW whose elements are all BCC, leading to the formers higher ductility and modulus-normalized yield strength. Consistent with our yield strength models, primarily screw dislocations are present in TiZrHfNbTa after deformation, but equal numbers of edge and screw segments in VNbTaMoW. Dislocation cores are compact in VNbTaMoW and extended in TiZrHfNbTa, and different macroscopic slip planes are activated in the two RHEAs, which we attribute to the concentration of HCP elements. Our findings demonstrate how electronic structure changes related to the ratio of HCP to BCC elements can be used to control strength, ductility, and slip behavior to develop the next generation of high-temperature materials for more efficient power plants and transportation.

Fully strange tetraquark states with the exotic quantum numbers and

Xi, H.-Z.*; Jiang, Y.-W.*; Chen, H.-X.*; Hosaka, Atsushi; Su, N.*

Physical Review D, 108(9), p.094019_1 - 094019_13, 2023/11

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.108.094019

no abstracts in English

Extreme phonon anharmonicity underpins superionic diffusion and ultralow thermal conductivity in argyrodite AgSnSe

Ren, Q.*; Gupta, M. K.*; Jin, M.*; Ding, J.*; Wu, J.*; Chen, Z.*; Lin, S.*; Fabelo, O.*; Rodriguez-Velamazan, J. A.*; Kofu, Maiko; et al.

Nature Materials, 22(8), p.999 - 1006, 2023/08

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-023-01560-x

Evaluation of light-element reactions in the resolved resonance region

Dimitriou, P.*; Chen, Z.*; deBoer, R. J.*; Hale, G.*; Kunieda, Satoshi; Leeb, H.*; Paris, M.*; Pigni, M. T.*; Srdinko, Th.*; Tamagno, P.*; et al.

EPJ Web of Conferences, 284, p.03002_1 - 03002_5, 2023/05

https://doi.org/10.1051/epjconf/202328403002

Charged-particle-induced reactions at low energies in the resolved resonance region are important for applications such as ion beam analysis of materials and management of the nuclear fuels. However, the evaluated nuclear data libraries maintained by national or international coordinated efforts (ENDF, JEFF, JENDL, CENDL) are to date, incomplete as far as charged-particle- induced reactions in the resolved resonance region are concerned. The IAEA Nuclear Data Section is coordinating an international effort to (i) verify that the existing R-matrix codes are consistent, (ii) evaluate charged-particle cross sections in the resolved resonance region, (iii) produce evaluated nuclear data files for further processing and finally (iv) disseminate the evaluated data through general purpose evaluated nuclear data libraries. We present the results of the effort made thus far on (1) verification of the available R-matrix codes, minimization methods and calculation of covariances, (2) the evaluation of the compound system Be*, and (3) improving reaction data for the applications.

"Southwestern" boundary of the island of inversion; First study of low-lying bound excited states in V and V

Elekes, Z.*; Juhsz, M. M.*; Sohler, D.*; Sieja, K.*; Yoshida, Kazuki; Ogata, Kazuyuki*; Doornenbal, P.*; Obertelli, A.*; Achouri, N. L.*; Baba, Hidetada*; et al.

Physical Review C, 106(6), p.064321_1 - 064321_10, 2022/12

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.106.064321

The low-lying level structure of V and V was investigated for the first time. The neutron knockout reaction and inelastic proton scattering were applied for V while the neutron knock-out reaction provided the data for V. Four and five new transitions were determined for V and V, respectively. Based on the comparison to our shell-model calculations using the Lenzi-Nowacki-Poves-Sieja (LNPS) interaction, three of the observed rays for each isotope could be placed in the level scheme and assigned to the decay of the first 11/2 and 9/2 levels. The (,) excitation cross sections for V were analyzed by the coupled-channels formalism assuming quadrupole plus hexadecapole deformations. Due to the role of the hexadecapole deformation, V could not be unambiguously placed on the island of inversion.