Abstract
High-pressure structures of germane (GeH4) are explored through ab initio evolutionary methodology to reveal a metallic monoclinic structure of C2/c (4 molecules/cell). The C2/c structure consists of layerlike motifs containing novel “H2” units. Enthalpy calculations suggest a remarkably wide decomposition (Ge+H2) pressure range of 0–196 GPa, above which C2/c structure is stable. Perturbative linear-response calculations for C2/c GeH4 at 220 GPa predict a large electron-phonon coupling parameter λ of 1.12 and the resulting superconducting critical temperature reaches 64 K.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 107002 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| Journal | Physical Review Letters |
| Volume | 101 |
| Issue number | 10 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 3 Sept 2008 |