intelligent Advanced Materials, Department of Biological & Chemical Engineering, Aarhus University, DK
The 2024 Terrae Rarae Award was presented in honor of Prof. Dr. Anja Mudring at the 2024 Terrae Rarae Meeting at the University of Stuttgart. She received the award in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the union of rare-earth elements and ionic liquids.
The award was founded 20 years ago. Prof. Dr. Mudring is the 17th awardee and the first woman to receive the award.
Congratulations!
In our latest publication we report the new ternary compound Zr7Pd7-xGa3+x (0 ≤ x ≤ 1.8), which was synthesized by arc melting the elements under argon and subsequent annealing the ingots at 870 K for 720 h. The polycrystalline samples were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) and the crystal structure of the compound was determined from single crystal X-ray diffraction data. The crystal structure of Zr7Pd7Ga3 is represented by a 3D Pd–Ga framework built of sinusoidal layers of Pd and Ga stacking along the b axis sandwiching the Zr atoms. Our electronic structure calculations revealed that substitution of Pd by Ga reduces destabilization contributed by strong Pd–Pd anti-bonding interactions, thus stabilizing Zr7(Pd,Ga)10. Additionally, strong heteroatomic bonding between Zr and the Pd/Ga substructure, puts it into the class of polar intermetallics. 
Read the full article here.
Yb3+-doped inorganic materials are constantly in demand due to a strong interest in fundamental and applied research. In our latest work with collaborators from Poland and France, we have refined synthesis methods utilizing ILs to establish a straightforward, quick, and reliable synthetic protocol to obtain high-quality nano-crystalline optical materials of Yb3+-doped LuPO4. We revealed an unusual simultaneous emission from two of the lowest levels of the 2F5/2 excited state observed at 77 K, measured for the first time and confirmed by the barycenter law for Yb3+-doped tetragonal LuPO4 revealing the lowest crystal field among Yb3+ ion-activated oxide crystals.
Read more from the article.
Intermetallics never cease to amaze us with their fascinating properties! In our recent work with colleagues from Genova, we discovered and described the unusual superconductivity in crystallographically disordered RT2−xSn2 compounds.
Read the full article here.
AVM received a Novo Nordisk Foundation Challenge Programme grant under the theme Novel or emerging technologies for sustainable and continuous energy supply (60 million DKK over 6 years).
“SMARTER – Salt Melts for Advanced Reactor Technology and Energy Research” can tackle the critical challenges of providing society with an economical, safe, stable, and sustainable energy solution. The project will be critical for closing the knowledge gaps in Molten Salt Reactor technology.
SMARTER brings together researchers Prof. Dr. Anja-Verena Mudring and Prof. Dr. Gerd Meyer (Aarhus University) with Prof. Dr. Robin Rogers (University of Wyoming) and Prof. Dr. Thomas Albrecht-Schönzart (Colorado School of Mines).
Read the press release from Novo Nordisk.
Ionic liquids, room temperature molten salts, can be tailored for specific applications, involving particular properties such as electroresponsivity. We recently discovered the critical role of anions in controlling this feature.
Read about our collaborative investigation of three nonhalogenated ionic liquids in terms of their bulk and electro-interfacial nanoscale structures using small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) and neutron reflectivity (NR) to understand the structure of ionic liquids:
Nanoparticles have stunning properties. Would you have ever imagined that the luminescence of nanoparticles could actually come from surface species? It is time to revise commonly accepted views.
Read the full J. Am. Chem. Soc paper here: Manipulation of Luminescence via Surface Site Occupation in Ln3+-Doped Nanocrystals
Realizing a hedgehog spin-vortex state is art in chemistry and physics! But it is not only aesthetic – combining magnetic frustration with electrical conductivity can allow simultaneous charge and spin manipulation, which is crucial for the design of next generation electronic devices.
Read more here: Making a Hedgehog Spin-Vortex State Possible: Geometric Frustration on a Square Lattice
Combining ionic liquids with microwave heating allows to make otherwise difficult to obtain solid solutions of perovskites. Making a solid solution of BaSnO3 and BaZrO3 allows for band gap tuning, an important aspect for photocatalysis.
Read more about it here: Synthesis and Exploration of Barium Stannate–Zirconate BaSn1–xZrxO3 (0 ≤ X ≤ 1) Solid Solutions as Photocatalysts
An article in honor of Vitalij K. Pecharsky – when looking for honeycomb motifs in intermetallics our team discovered two new isostructural series of intermetallics: La4Co4M (M = Sn, Sb, Te, Pb, Bi) and La3Ni3M (M = Al, Ga):
