Our institute’s scientists Juris Purans, Inga Pudza and Alexei Kuzmin together with colleagues A. P. Menushenkov, S. P. Besedin, A. A. Ivanov, V. S. Minkov, K. V. Klementiev, S. Pascarelli, O. Mathon, A. D. Rosa, T. Irifune, M. I. Eremets representing such world-leading scientific research centers as National Research Nuclear University MEPhI (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute) Moscow, Russia., Max-Planck Institut für Chemie (Mainz, Germany), MAX IV Laboratory (Lund, Sweden), European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (Grenoble, France), European X-Ray Free Electron Laser (XFEL) GmbH (Schenefeld, Germany) and Geodynamics Research Center, Ehime University (Matsuyama, Japan) have published an article “Local electronic structure rearrangements and strong anharmonicity in YH3 under pressures up to 180 GPa” in Nature Communications 12 (2021) 1765 with an impact factor of 12.121!
In the article, scientists describe one of the greatest unsolved challenges in science - creating room-temperature superconductors. The discovery of superconductivity above 250 K in superhydrides stimulated studies for a better understanding of the hydrogen interaction mechanism with the heavy atom sublattice under high pressure at the atomic scale. The authors used locally sensitive X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XANES/EXAFS) together with X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy to get insight into the nature of phase transitions and the rearrangements of local electronic and crystal structure in archetypal metal hydride YH3 under pressure up to 180 GPa. Evidence of a strong effect of hydrogen on the density increase of 4d yttrium states and strong anharmonic vibrations of yttrium atoms in YH3 have been discovered. These results will contribute to a better understanding of the hydrogen interaction mechanism with the heavy atom sublattice and high-temperature superconductivity in metal hydrides.
Nature Communications is an open access journal that publishes high-quality research from all areas of the natural sciences. Papers published by the journal represent important advances of significance to specialists within each field.
