dc.description.abstract
The search for topological insulator/semimetal in strongly correlated systems
represents an exciting topic in condensed matter physics. Recently, noncentrosymmetric
Ce3Bi4Pd3 has been considered as the first Weyl-Kondo semimetal
candidate, which attracted remarkable attention [1]. Here we present the single crystal
growth of Ce3Bi4Pd3 as well as its characterization by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD),
single crystal X-ray diffraction (SCXD), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX)
and Laue measurements. The pseudo-binary phase diagram CePd-Bi was
established by differential thermal analysis (DTA). Based on this diagram single
crystals were grown using Bi or Bi/Pb flux either by slow cooling technique or by
modified Bridgman method. The physical properties of single crystals are sensitive to
growth conditions, including the flux type, the initial composition, and the temperature
profile. This is reflected by contradictory conclusions on the ground state of this
material in the literature [2,3]. The quality of crystals was found to be determined by
various degree of Pd deficiency. Based on the combined analyses of the SCXD, XRD,
and EDX data we confirmed that the Pd deficiency is realized mainly through Pd
vacancies Ce3Bi4Pd3-. Systematic variations of low temperature magnetic
susceptibility and specific heat on Pd vacancy were observed. Various techniques
to control the vacancy content in Ce3Bi4Pd3- are reported.
[1] S. Dzsaber, L. Prochaska, A. Sidorenko, G. Eguchi, R. Svagera, M. Wass, A. Prokofiev, Q. Si, and
S. Paschen, PRL, 2017, 118, 246601: 1-6.
[2] S. Dzsaber, X. Yan, M. Taupin, G. Eguchi, A. Prokofiev, T. Shiroka, P. Blaha, O. Rubel, S.E.
Grefe, H-H, Lai, Q. Si, and S. Paschen, PNAS, 2021, 118, e2013386118: 1-8.
[3] S.K. Kushwaha, M.K. Chan, J. Park, S.M. Thomas, E.D. Bauer, J.D. Thompson, F. Ronning,
P.F.S. Rosa, and N. Harrison, Nat. Commun., 2019, 5487: 1-9.
Acknowledgments: The authors acknowledge financial support from the Austrian Science Fund (FWF Grants
exSOC I4047-N27, P29279-N27, and P29296-N27)
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