A partly disordered 2 × 2 × 2 – superstructure of γ-brass related phase in Mn–Ni–Zn system

Abstract

Abstract The T phase in the Mn–Ni–Zn system was obtained as a product of high-temperature solid-state syntheses from the loaded composition of MnxNi2−xZn11 (x = 0.2–1.5)/MnxNi15.38−xZn84.62 (x = 1.54–11.54). The crystal structure of the T phase has been explored by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). The structures were solved in the face-centered cubic space group F 4 ‾ 3 m $F‾{4}3m$ (216) and contain 409–410 atoms/unit cell. The lattice constants were found to be a = 18.1727(2) and 18.1954(1) Å for crystals C1 and C2, respectively. The crystal structure denoted the T phase is a (2aγ)3-superstructure of the ordinary cubic γ-brass-type phase. The phase is isostructural to (Fe, Ni)Zn6.5. A “cluster” description has been used to visualize the crystal structure of the title phase. The structures have been constructed by the five distinct clusters and they are situated about the high symmetry sites of the face-centered cubic lattice. The T phase is stabilized at a valance electron concentration of 1.78, which is slightly higher than those expected for typical γ-brass Hume‐Rothery compounds.