The metallization and superconductivity of dense hydrogen sulfide.

By Yinwei Li, J. Hao, Hanyu Liu, Yanling Li, Yanming Ma. Journal of Chemical Physics, 2014

652 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is a prototype molecular system and a sister molecule of water (H2O). The phase diagram of solid H2S at high pressures remains largely unexplored arising from the challenges in dealing with the pressure-induced weakening of S-H bond and larger atomic core difference between H and S. Metallization is yet achieved for H2O, but it was observed for H2S above 96 GPa. However, the metallic structure of H2S remains elusive, greatly impeding the understanding of its metallicity and the potential superconductivity. We have performed an extensive structural study on solid H2S at pressure ranges of 10-200 GPa through an unbiased structure prediction method based on particle swarm optimization algorithm. Besides the findings of candidate structures for nonmetallic phases IV and V, we are able to establish stable metallic structures violating an earlier proposal of elemental decomposition into sulfur and hydrogen [R. Rousseau, M. Boero, M. Bernasconi, M. Parrinello, and K. Terakura, Phys. Rev. Lett. 85, 1254 (2000)]. Our study unravels a superconductive potential of metallic H2S with an estimated maximal transition temperature of ∼80 K at 160 GPa, higher than those predicted for most archetypal hydrogen-containing compounds (e.g., SiH4, GeH4, etc.).

Subfields: Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics, Geophysics, Inorganic Chemistry

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/386f9d199efba660a30afb654dbe23682b4a1a50

How researchers see this paper

The researchers whose trusted networks rank it highest, strongest advocate first. Every researcher gets a different order.

In Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics

1. J. A. Flores-Livas
2. Ryotaro Arita
3. M. Eremets
4. G. Profeta
5. A. Sanna
6. L. Boeri

In Geophysics

1. M. Eremets
2. A. Drozdov
3. J. A. Flores-Livas
4. A. Sanna
5. I. Troyan
6. Russell J. Hemley
7. Yang Ding
8. Lin Wang

Citations in the corpus

• Structure and superconductivity of hydrides at high pressures (2017, background): “In 2014, theoretically predicted that H2S can’t decompose into sulfur and hydrogen up to 200 GPa [85].”
• A perspective on conventional high-temperature superconductors at high pressure: Methods and materials (2019, background): “This value was clearly at odds with Yanming Ma’s group original prediction [160].”
• Solids, liquids, and gases under high pressure (2018, background): “Excitingly, Drozdov et al. (2015) reported a similar Tc in the sulfur hydride system, although this experimental study was inspired by the theoretical prediction of Li et al. (2014).”
• Potential high-Tc superconducting lanthanum and yttrium hydrides at high pressure (2017, background): “First, theoretical calculations predicted H2S to have a Tc of ∼80 K at pressures above 100 GPa (19).”
• Evidence for Superconductivity above 260 K in Lanthanum Superhydride at Megabar Pressures. (2018, background): “Following the discovery of novel compound formation in the S-H system at modest pressures [4], theoretical calculations predicted that hydrogen sulfide would transform on further compression to a superconductor with a T c up to the 200 K range [5,6].”
• Conventional superconductivity at 190 K at high pressures (2014, result): “The superconductive high pressure phases of H3S found in the theoretical study of the (H2S)2H2 system [11] have Tcs of ∼ 160 K and 190 K − in agreement with our experimental values (Figures 1,2).”