The Changing Landscape of Materials Discovery.

In this perspective, we will discuss the impact of some of the most recent advancements in materials discovery, particularly focusing on the role of robotics, artificial intelligence, and self-driving laboratories, as well as their implications for the Swiss research landscape. While it seems timely to aim for broad, revolutionary breakthroughs in this field, we argue that more incremental steps - such as, for example, fully automatic grinding of solid powders or fully automated Rietveld refinements - may have a more significant impact on materials discovery, at least in the short run. In the center of these considerations is how small, interdisciplinary groups can drive significant progress by contributing targeted innovations, such as e.

Efficient soft-chemical synthesis of large van-der-Waals crystals of the room-temperature ferromagnet 1T-CrTe.

We herein report on a fast and convenient soft-chemical synthesis approach towards large 1T-CrTe van-der-Waals crystals. This compound is formed X-ray diffraction pure, with a complete conversion within just over 2 h from flux-grown LiCrTe crystals using diluted acids. Due to the availability of high-quality single crystals, we have confirmed the crystal structure for the first time by single-crystal X-ray diffraction experiments.

From weak- to strong-coupling superconductivity in the AlB-type solid solution SrGaAlGe with honeycomb layers.

We report on the structure and the superconducting properties of 9-electron 111 compounds with honeycomb layers, namely SrGaGe, SrAlGe, and the SrGa1-xAlGe solid solution. By means of single-crystal x-ray diffraction we show that, on one hand, SrGaGe crystallizes into the centrosymmetric6/space group (= 4.2555(2) Å,= 4.

A sacrificial magnet concept for field dependent surface science studies.

We demonstrate a straightforward approach to integrating a magnetic field into a low-temperature scanning tunneling microscope (STM) by adhering an NdFeB permanent magnet to a magnetizable sample plate. To render our magnet concept compatible with high-temperature sample cleaning procedures, we make the irreversible demagnetization of the magnet a central part of our preparation cycle. After sacrificing the magnet by heating it above its Curie temperature, we use a transfer tool to attach a new magnet in-situ prior to transferring the sample into the STM.

Discovery of superconductivity in NbSiSb with a VSiSb-type structure and implications of interstitial doping on its physical properties.

We report on the discovery, structural analysis, and the physical properties of NbSiSb - a unknown compound crystallizing in the VSiSb-type structure with the tetragonal space group 4/ and unit cell parameters = 10.3638(2) Å and = 4.9151(2) Å.

Quantum Materials Discovery by Combining Chemical and Physical Design Principles.

Exploratory quantum materials discovery remains crucial to progress in material science. Due to the grand challenges that we are facing in predicting these materials and their properties from scratch, chemical design principles remain a key ingredient for the discovery of new materials. Chemical heuristics, structure, bonding, as well as global and local symmetries are at the very foundation of materials properties.

Dynamic magnetic crossover at the origin of the hidden-order in van der Waals antiferromagnet CrSBr.

The van-der-Waals material CrSBr stands out as a promising two-dimensional magnet. Here, we report on its detailed magnetic and structural characteristics. We evidence that it undergoes a transition to an A-type antiferromagnetic state below T ≈ 140 K with a pronounced two-dimensional character, preceded by ferromagnetic correlations within the monolayers.

Quasi-1D Electronic Transport in a 2D Magnetic Semiconductor.

Electronic transport through exfoliated multilayers of CrSBr, a 2D semiconductor of interest because of its magnetic properties, is investigated. An extremely pronounced anisotropy manifesting itself in qualitative and quantitative differences of all quantities measured along the in-plane a and b crystallographic directions is found. In particular, a qualitatively different dependence of the conductivities σ and σ on temperature and gate voltage, accompanied by orders of magnitude differences in their values (σ /σ  ≈ 3 × 10  to 10 at low temperature and negative gate voltage) are observed, together with a different behavior of the longitudinal magnetoresistance in the two directions and the complete absence of the Hall effect in transverse resistance measurements.

Break of symmetry at the surface of IrTeupon phase transition measured by x-ray photoelectron diffraction.

IrTeundergoes a series of charge-ordered phase transitions below room temperature that are characterized by the formation of stripes of Ir dimers of different periodicities. Full hemispherical x-ray photoelectron diffraction (XPD) experiments have been performed to investigate the atomic position changes undergone near the surface of 1-IrTein the first-order phase transition, from the (1 × 1) phase to the (5 × 1) phase. Comparison between experiment and simulation allows us to identify the consequence of the dimerization on the Ir atoms local environment.

Synthetic control over polymorph formation in the d-band semiconductor system FeS.

Pyrite, also known as fool's gold is the thermodynamic stable polymorph of FeS. It is widely considered as a promising d-band semiconductor for various applications due to its intriguing physical properties. Marcasite is the other naturally occurring polymorph of FeS.

Superconductivity with High Upper Critical Field in the Cubic Centrosymmetric η-Carbide NbRhC.

The upper critical field is a fundamental measure of the strength of superconductivity in a material. It is also a cornerstone for the realization of superconducting magnet applications. The critical field arises because of the Cooper pair breaking at a limiting field, which is due to the Pauli paramagnetism of the electrons.

Polytypism and superconductivity in the NbS system.

We report on the phase formation and the superconducting properties in the NbS2 system. Specifically, we have performed a series of standardized solid-state syntheses in this system, which allow us to establish a comprehensive synthesis map for the formation of the two polytypes 2H-NbS2 and 3R-NbS2, respectively. We show that the identification of two polytypes by means of X-ray diffraction is not always unambiguous.

The h-Sb WO Oxygen Excess Antimony Tungsten Bronze.

We describe the previously unreported oxygen excess hexagonal antimony tungsten bronze is reported, with a composition of Sb W O , in the following denoted as h-Sb WO with x=0.167, to demonstrate its analogy to classical A WO tungsten bronzes. This compound forms in a relatively narrow temperature range between 580 °C View Article and Find Full Text PDF

High-Pressure Synthesis and Characterization of β-GeSe-A Six-Membered-Ring Semiconductor in an Uncommon Boat Conformation.

Two-dimensional materials have significant potential for the development of new devices. Here we report the electronic and structural properties of β-GeSe, a previously unreported polymorph of GeSe, with a unique crystal structure that displays strong two-dimensional structural features. β-GeSe is made at high pressure and temperature and is stable under ambient conditions.