Event Date
Zintl phases, Hydrides and Electrides: Synthesis, Properties and Applications
There are many technologies where progress towards higher efficiency and broader application is materials-limited. This seminar will outline the requirements for efficient energy conversion from waste heat directly to electricity (thermoelectric properties) in Zintl phases, and our synthetic efforts employing hydrides and the formation of electrides and their solid solutions. Zintl phases are a subclass of intermetallics, compounds composed entirely of metals. Zintl phases exhibit a mixture of ionic and covalent bonding, and simple chemical considerations relate their chemical and electronic structures, allowing for predictability, design, and optimization of properties. Electrides are materials where an electron serves the role of an anion. I will provide the context of the critical structural and electronic design of Zintl phases with the Ca14AlSb11 structure type, the utility of hydrides for synthesis, and the investigation of an electride-hydride solid solution. These illustrations will demonstrate the strength of chemical principles in discovery.