Thursday, March 12 at 1:30 p.m. by videoconference
Yann Le Godec
Institute of Mineralogy, Physics of Materials and Cosmochemistry (IMPMC Paris)
Synthesis under extreme conditions of new lightweight materials with remarkable properties
Summary: Modern high-pressure chemistry is today a vast and dynamic field of research, offering promising prospects for the development of new materials of industrial interest. Although this discipline is still relatively young compared with conventional chemistry, it is already revealing exceptional potential that remains largely unexplored. Its pioneering nature and revolutionary prospects make it a veritable scientific terra incognita, justifying the growing interest it is arousing.
In this context, recent advances in X-ray diffraction under extreme conditions have revolutionized the methods used to explore these new territories, paving the way for unprecedented discoveries. Over the past decade, intensive use of in situ synchrotron radiation has enabled direct observation of the synthesis pathways of new materials, whether stable or metastable, under extreme conditions. These materials, often inaccessible by conventional methods, feature remarkable properties such as high-temperature superconductivity, exceptional hardness and optimized photovoltaics.
In-situ observation of synthesis processes now enables much more precise determination of the thermodynamic conditions required to access metastable states. In this presentation, I will show that combining very high pressures and temperatures with in situ X-ray diffraction probes using synchrotron radiation is an essential methodological key to controlling the composition and microstructure (nanostructuring) of new materials (borides, carbides, silicon compounds, etc.) with exceptional properties.
