Pressure-induced polymerization of 1,4-difluorobenzene towards fluorinated diamond nanothreads

Che, G.*; Fei, Y.*; Tang, X.*; Zhao, Z.*; Hattori, Takanori; Abe, Jun*; Wang, X.*; Ju, J.*; Dong, X.*; Wang, Y.*; et al.

Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 27(2), p.1112 - 1118, 2025/01

https://doi.org/10.1039/D4CP03751K

Pressure-induced polymerization (PIP) of aromatic molecules has emerged as an effective method for synthesizing various carbon-based materials. In this work, PIP of 1,4-difluorobenzene (1,4-DFB) was investigated. high-pressure investigations of 1,4-DFB reveal a phase transition at approximately 12.0 GPa and an irreversible chemical reaction at 18.7 GPa. Structural analysis of the product and the kinetics of the reaction uncovered the formation of pseudohexagonal stacked fluoro-diamond nanothreads with linear growth. Compared to the crystal structures of benzene under high pressure, 1,4-DFB exhibits higher compression along the [001] axis. The anisotropic compression is attributed to the stronger H interaction along the [01] axis and the potential compression-inhibiting HF interactions along the [100] and [010] axes, and it facilitates a possible reaction pathway along the [01] axis. This work emphasizes the crucial role of functionalization in modulating molecular stacking and influencing the reaction pathway.

Signatures of Kitaev interactions in the van der Waals ferromagnet VI

Gu, Y. Q.*; Gu, Y. M.*; Liu, F.*; Kawamura, Seiko; Murai, Naoki; Zhao, J.*

Physical Review Letters, 132(24), p.246702_1 - 246702_7, 2024/06

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.132.246702

Influence of clay-doped water on permeability in granite rock mass

Nara, Yoshitaka*; Kashiwaya, Koki*; Oketani, Kazuki*; Fujii, Hirokazu*; Zhao, Y.*; Kato, Masaji*; Aoyagi, Kazuhei; Ozaki, Yusuke; Matsui, Hiroya; Kono, Masanori*

Zairyo, 73(3), p.220 - 225, 2024/03

https://doi.org/10.2472/jsms.73.220

The fractures in the rock are the main pass of groundwater flow and solute transport. The filling of fine-grained particle, such as clay minerals, was confirmed to decrease the permeability of rock by laboratory experiment. This research aimed to verify the occurrence of the phenomena in the field. The water containing the clay minerals was injected into the rock at the 200m stage of the Mizunami Underground research laboratory. The hydraulic conductivity decreased two order before and after the injection. This result suggested that the decrease of hydraulic conductivity by the filling of fine-grained particle in the fractures occurred in the real field.

Oxygen interstitials make metastable titanium alloys strong and ductile

Chong, Y.*; Gholizadeh, R.*; Guo, B.*; Tsuru, Tomohito; Zhao, G.*; Yoshida, Shuhei*; Mitsuhara, Masatoshi*; Godfrey, A.*; Tsuji, Nobuhiro*

Acta Materialia, 257, p.119165_1 - 119165_14, 2023/09

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actamat.2023.119165

Metastable titanium alloys possess excellent strain-hardening capability, but suffer from a low yield strength. As a result, numerous attempts have been made to strengthen this important structural material in the last decade. Here, we explore the contributions of grain refinement and interstitial additions in raising the yield strength of a Ti-12Mo (wt.%) metastable titanium alloy. Surprisingly, rather than strengthening the material, grain refinement actually lowers the ultimate tensile strength in this alloy. This unexpected and anomalous behavior is attributed to a significant enhancement in strain-induced martensite phase transformation, where in-situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction analysis reveals, for the first time, that this phase is much softer than the parent phase. Instead, a combination of both oxygen addition and grain refinement is found to realize an unprecedented strength-ductility synergy in a Ti-12Mo-0.3O (wt.%) alloy. The advantageous effect of oxygen solutes in this ternary alloy is twofold. Firstly, solute oxygen largely suppresses strain-induced transformation to the martensite phase, even in a fine-grained microstructure, thus avoiding the softening effect of excessive amounts of martensite. Secondly, oxygen solutes readily segregate to twin boundaries, as revealed by atom probe tomography. This restricts the growth of deformation twins, thereby promoting more extensive twin nucleation, leading to enhanced microstructural refinement. The insights from our work provide a cost-effective rationale for the design of strong yet tough metastable titanium alloys, with significant implications for more widespread use of this high strength-to-weight structural material.

A Predicted CRISPR-mediated symbiosis between uncultivated archaea

Esser, S. P.*; Rahlff, J.*; Zhao, W.*; Predl, M.*; Plewka, J.*; Sures, K.*; Wimmer, F.*; Lee, J.*; Adam, P. S.*; McGonigle, J.*; et al.

Nature Microbiology (Internet), 8(9), p.1619 - 1633, 2023/09

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-023-01439-2

Deformation mechanism of a strong and ductile maraging steel investigated using X-ray synchrotron diffraction

Li, H.*; Liu, Y.*; Zhao, W.*; Liu, B.*; Tominaga, Aki; Shobu, Takahisa; Wei, D.*

International Journal of Plasticity, 165, p.103612_1 - 103612_20, 2023/06

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijplas.2023.103612

In order to clarify the strength properties of Co-free maraging steel, tensile experiment using high energy synchrotron X-ray diffraction was performed. Diffraction profiles from the martensitic and austenitic phases were obtained, and their strength and width were observed to vary as loading. Analysis of the diffraction profiles showed that the content of martensite in the as-aged material decreased slowly at low stress levels and decreased rapidly at high stress levels. On the other hand, the austenite phase in the as-solution materials was significantly transformed the martensite phase as the stress increased. It was clarified to be responsible for their respective strength properties.

Two-dimensional quantum universality in the spin-1/2 triangular-lattice quantum antiferromagnet NaBaCo(PO)

Sheng, J.*; Wang, L.*; Candini, A.*; Jiang, W.*; Huang, L.*; Xi, B.*; Zhao, J.*; Ge, H.*; Zhao, N.*; Fu, Y.*; et al.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 119(51), p.e2211193119_1 - e2211193119_9, 2022/12

https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2211193119

Magnetic properties and electronic configurations of Mn ions in the diluted magnetic semiconductor BaK(ZnMn)As studied by X-ray magnetic circular dichroism and resonant inelastic X-ray scattering

Suzuki, Hakuto*; Zhao, G.*; Okamoto, Jun*; Sakamoto, Shoya*; Chen, Z.-Y.*; Nonaka, Yosuke*; Shibata, Goro; Zhao, K.*; Chen, B.*; Wu, W.-B.*; et al.

Journal of the Physical Society of Japan, 91(6), p.064710_1 - 064710_5, 2022/06

https://doi.org/10.7566/JPSJ.91.064710

Evidence for strong correlations at finite temperatures in the dimerized magnet NaCuTeO

Shangguan, Y.*; Bao, S.*; Dong, Z.-Y.*; Cai, Z.*; Wang, W.*; Huang, Z.*; Ma, Z.*; Liao, J.*; Zhao, X.*; Kajimoto, Ryoichi; et al.

Physical Review B, 104(22), p.224430_1 - 224430_8, 2021/12

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.104.224430

Odd-parity autoionizing levels of uranium observed by two-color two-step photoionization optogalvanic spectroscopy

Miyabe, Masabumi; Satou, Yukihiko; Wakaida, Ikuo; Terabayashi, Ryohei*; Sonnenschein, V.*; Tomita, Hideki*; Zhao, Y.*; Sakamoto, Tetsuo*

Journal of Physics B; Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics, 54(14), p.145003_1 - 145003_8, 2021/07

https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6455/abf89f

Two-color two-step photoionization optogalvanic spectroscopy was performed using high-repetition-rate titanium sapphire lasers and a uranium hollow cathode lamp to find the two-step resonance ionization schemes of uranium. Many ionization transitions were observed by exciting uranium atoms in a ground state into five, even parity, excited levels with the first-step laser and by scanning the second-step laser wavelengths. By blocking the first-step laser, single-color, two-photon ionization transitions were also identified. From these results, we have found more than 50 odd-parity autoionizing levels of uranium in the energy, ranging from the ionization potential (49958.4 cm) to 51150 cm. The determined energy levels are within 1 cm of previously reported values.