Magnéli phases exhibit significant potential for applications in electronic materials in energy conversion due to their high electrical conductivity and excellent thermal stability. In this study, single-phase Ti_nO_2n−1 (n = 4, 5, 6) bulk materials were successfully prepared by a combination of the carbothermal reduction of nano-sized rutile TiO₂ and hot-press sintering methods. The relationships between the phase evolution, microstructural features, and thermoelectric performance were investigated systematically. Synchrotron X-ray diffraction (SXRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analyses revealed that the Ti₄O₇ and Ti₅O₉ materials had single-phase structures with high densities (relative density > 97%) and no obvious grain boundary holes or microcracks. We tested the thermoelectric properties of the Magnéli phases in the temperature range of 300–1100 K. The Magnéli phases exhibited a significant temperature dependence, with peak zT values of 0.17, 0.18, and 0.14 for Ti₄O₇, Ti₅O₉, and Ti₆O₁₁, respectively, at 1100 K. This variation in thermoelectric performance was mainly attributed to the synergistic effect of the oxygen vacancy concentration and the shear surface density on the carrier concentration and lattice thermal conductivity. Furthermore, the Fermi energy levels and electronic thermal conductivity of the Magnéli phases were calculated using the single parabolic band (SPB) model.

Achieving strength-ductility and functional integration is a key issue to promote the application of alloys in the field of functional materials. CoFeNiCrxAl1−x alloys exhibit excellent magnetic and corrosion resistance properties; however, their mechanical properties remain underexplored and insufficiently understood. In this work, the microstructure and mechanical properties of CoFeNiCrxAl1−x alloys were investigated, and their intrinsic deformation mechanisms were elucidated. The results indicate that as Cr is gradually replaced by Al, the phase structure transforms from a single-phase face-centered cubic (FCC) structure to a dual-phase FCC and body-centered cubic (BCC), and finally to a BCC/B2 structure. Mechanical tests demonstrated that alloy hardness rises with higher Al content, with the Cr0Al1 alloy exhibiting a hardness approximately 3.3 times greater than that of the Cr1Al0 alloy. Notably, the Cr0.5Al0.5 alloy exhibits an optimal strength-ductility balance, with a yield strength increase in about 60% to 248 MPa and tensile strength increase in about 36% to 610 MPa, while maintaining nearly the same ductility as the Cr1Al0 alloy. The deformation mechanisms were found to be driven by solid solution strengthening due to severe lattice distortion, a high dislocation density resulting from reduced dislocation formation energy, the second-phase strengthening and interface strengthening via the micrometer-scale BCC phase, and twin-induced plasticity induced by the reduced stack fault energy. This work broadens the potential applications of CoFeNiCrxAl1-x alloys as versatile engineering and magnetic functional materials.

The epitaxial La(Cr0.2Mn0.2Fe0.2Co0.2Ni0.2)O3 (L5BO3) thin films with varying oxygen vacancies were prepared on (001) SrTiO3 substrates in this work. These thin films exhibit a high degree of crystallinity and prominent semiconductor characteristics. The valence state of the B-site elements is influenced by the introduction of oxygen vacancies, which in turn affects the spin state. Electrical properties were investigated across a broad temperature range (150–400 K), demonstrating significant resistivity variations of up to 3 orders of magnitude as a function of oxygen vacancies. The corresponding mechanisms of small polaron hopping and variable range hopping are discussed. This work explores the effect of oxygen vacancies on the structure and performance of L5BO3 high-entropy oxide films prepared under various oxygen pressures, offering foundational insights into the compositional manipulation of high-entropy oxides.

For expedite the development of high titanium heavy slag concrete, eight high titanium heavy slag high strength reinforced concrete (HTHS-HSRC) scale model column are studied. The eight HTHS-HSRC model columns are tested under reversed horizontal force. Primary experimental parameters include axial load ratio varying from 0.3 to 0.5, volumetric ratios of transverse reinforcement ranging from 1.38% to 1.56%, strength of high titanium heavy slag high strength concrete varying from 55.9 to 61.6 N/mm2 and configurations of transverse reinforcement. It is found from the test result that HTHS-HSRC model columns provides comparable seismic performance to those usually used reinforced concrete column in terms of member ductility, hysteretic and energy dissipation capacity. Primary Factors of Displacement Ductility of Model Columns are also discussed.

The intrinsic magnetization compensation behaviors of rare-earth iron garnets (REIGs) make the material promising for applications in ultrafast spin storage devices. REIG/heavy metal heterostructures such as TbIG/Pt often display two sign crossovers of anomalous Hall effect resistance with varying temperatures. One of these crossovers is attributed to the magnetization compensation of REIG, and the other to the competition between the magnetic proximity effect and the spin Hall effect. Here, we design trilayer REIG heterostructures based on two rare-earth species (Tb and Eu). We modulate the layer stacking of the TbIG/EuIG/TbIG sandwich with a fixed total thickness and explore the contributions of REIG bulk and REIG/Pt interfaces on these two crossover points. As TbIG gradually moves away from Pt, the compensation temperature shows some fluctuations. However, when TbIG is entirely out of contact with Pt, the second crossover point undergoes a change that shows REIG/Pt interface dependency. The results highlight the dominance of REIG bulk on the compensation behavior and the interface sensitivity of the second crossover point. This study provides a reference for designing controllable spintronics devices, such as magnon valve applications.