Water and hydrogen at high pressure make up a substantial fraction of the interiors of giant planets. Using ab initio random structure search methods we investigate the ground-state crystal structures of water, hydrogen, and hydrogen-oxygen compounds. We find that, at pressures beyond 14 Mbar, excess hydrogen is incorporated into the ice phase to form a novel structure with H4O stoichiometry. We also predict two new ground state structures, P2_1/m and I4/mmm, for post-C2/m water ice.
Point defect complexes in crystalline silicon composed of hydrogen, nitrogen, and oxygen atoms are studied within density-functional theory (DFT). Ab initio Random Structure Searching (AIRSS) is used to find low-energy defect structures. We find new lowest-energy structures for several defects: the triple-oxygen defect, {3O}, triple oxygen with a nitrogen atom, {N, 3O}, triple nitrogen with an oxygen atom, {3N,O}, double hydrogen and an oxygen atom, {2H,O}, double hydrogen and oxygen atoms, {2H,2O} and four hydrogen/nitrogen/oxygen complexes, {H,N,O}, {2H,N,O}, {H,2N,O} and {H,N,2O}. We find t…
wo-dimensional (2D) materials unique properties and their promising applications in post-silicon microelectronics have attracted significant attention in the past decade. Recently, ferromagnetic order with out-of-plane easy axis in a monolayer of CrI3 has been observed and reported, with a Curie temperature of 45 K. Here we study, using density functional theory (DFT) calculations, how hydrogen and oxygen adsorption affects the structural, electronic, and magnetic properties of a CrI3 monolayer. Our results show that while the structure remains almost unchanged by the adsorption of hydrogen, a…
We present a detailed ab initio study of the electronic structure and magnetic order of an Fe monolayer on the Ir(001) surface covered by adsorbed oxygen and hydrogen. The results are compared to the clean Fe/Ir(001) system, where recent intensive studies indicated a strong tendency towards an antiferromagnetic order and complex magnetic structures. The adsorption of an oxygen overlayer significantly increases interlayer distance between the Fe layer and the Ir substrate, while the effect of hydrogen is much weaker. We show that the adsorption of oxygen (and also of hydrogen) leads to a p(2$\t…
An oxygen assisted hydrocarbon chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method is developed to afford large-scale highly reproducible ultra high-yield growth of vertical single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT). It is revealed that reactive hydrogen (H)-species, inevitable in hydrocarbon-based growth, are damaging to the formation of sp2-like SWNTs. The addition of oxygen scavenges H-species and provides a powerful control over the C/H ratio to favor SWNT growth. The revelation of the roles played by hydrogen and oxygen leads to a unified and universal optimum growth condition for SWNTs. Further, a versat…
Results of the experimental study of ordering lanthanum hydrides of LaHX system are presented. It is shown that obtained results can be interpreted as an indirect confirmation of the existence of order-order transformations in LaH2+c hydrides.
Using density-functional theory in combination with a thermodynamic formalism we calculate the relative stability of various structural models of the polar O-terminated (000-1)-O surface of ZnO. Model surfaces with different concentrations of oxygen vacancies and hydrogen adatoms are considered. Assuming that the surfaces are in thermodynamic equilibrium with an O2 and H2 gas phase we determine a phase diagram of the lowest-energy surface structures. For a wide range of temperatures and pressures we find that hydrogen will be adsorbed at the surface, preferentially with a coverage of 1/2 monol…
Silica, water and hydrogen are known to be the major components of celestial bodies, and have significant influence on the formation and evolution of giant planets, such as Uranus and Neptune. Thus, it is of fundamental importance to investigate their states and possible reactions under the planetary conditions. Here, using advanced crystal structure searches and first-principles calculations in the Si-O-H system, we find that a silica-water compound (SiO2)2(H2O) and a silica-hydrogen compound SiO2H2 can exist under high pressures above 450 and 650 GPa, respectively. Further simulations reveal…
We investigated the preferred electron dopants at the oxygen sites of 1111-type SmFeAsO by changing the atmospheres around the precursor with the composition of Sm:Fe:As:O = 1:1:1:1-x in high-pressure synthesis. Under H2O and H2 atmospheres, hydrogens derived from H2O or H2 molecules were introduced into the oxygen sites as a hydride ion, and SmFeAsO1-xHx was obtained. However, when the H2O and H2 sources were removed from the synthetic process, nearly stoichiometric SmFeAsO was obtained and the maximum amount of oxygen vacancies introduced remained x = 0.05(4). Density functional theory calcu…
Zirconium and its alloys are extensively used as cladding material in nuclear reactors. They are vulnerable to hydrogen degradation under the harsh service conditions of the reactors, which necessitates continuous monitoring for the hydride concentration. The presence of hydride denuded zones in the latter stages of the pressure tube's life hinders the monitoring process, which is carried out by scrape samples taken from the surface of pressure tubes. We investigated the effect of oxygen on diffusivity of hydrogen in hcp-Zr, to check the hypothesis that oxygen slows the diffusion of hydrogen a…
The theoretical analysis of the process of diffusion of interstitial oxygen atoms and hydrogen molecules in silicon and germanium crystals has been performed. The calculated values of the activation energy and pre-exponential factor for an interstitial oxygen atom Ea(Si) = 2.59 eV, Ea(Ge) = 2.05 eV, D(Si)= 0.28 cm2s-1, D(Ge)= 0.39 cm2s-1 and interstitial hydrogen molecule Ea(Si) = 0.79-0.83 eV, Ea(Ge) = 0.58-0.62 eV, D(Si)= 7.4 10(-4) cm2s-1, D(Ge)= 6.5 10(-4) cm2s-1 are in an excellent agreement with experimental ones and for the first time describe perfectly an experimental temperature depen…
Knowing the correlation between grain boundary mobility and oxygen potential in yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ), we have utilized the grain size as a microstructural marker to map local oxygen potential. Abrupt oxygen potential transition is established under a large current density and in thicker samples. Cathodically depressed oxygen potential can be easily triggered by poor electrode kinetics or in an oxygen-lean environment. Widespread cavitation in the presence of highly reducing oxygen potential suggests oxygen vacancy condensation instead of oxygen bubble formation as commonly assumed …
Atomic scale understanding of the role of hydrogen and oxygen segregation in the embrittlement of grain boundaries in a twinning induced plasticity steel
Possible candidates for the Mg2B3Ox nanostructures observed in bulk of polycrystalline MgB2 (Ref.1) have been studied using a combination of Z-contrast imaging, electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) and first-principles calculations. The electronic structures, phonon modes, and electron phonon coupling parameters are calculated for two oxygen-ordered MgB2 compounds of composition Mg2B3O and Mg2B3O2, and compared with those of MgB2. We find that the density of states for both Mg2B3Ox structures show very good agreement with EELS, indicating that they are excellent candidates to explain the o…
We investigate the charge density distribution in titanium dioxide, molecular titanium complexes and a variety of periodic titanium compounds using delocalization indices and Bader charge analysis. Our results are in agreement with previous experimental and theoretical investigations on the charge stability and deviation from formal oxidation states in transition metal compounds. We present examples for practically relevant redox processes, using molecular titanium dioxide model systems, that illustrate the failure of formal oxidation states to account for some redox phenomena. We observe a pr…
$BaCuSi_2O_6$ is a quasi-two dimensional spin dimer system and a model material for studying Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) of magnons in high magnetic fields. The new $Ba_{1-x}Sr_xCuSi_2O_6$ mixed system, which can be grown with x < 0.3, and $BaCuSi_2O_6$, both grown by using a crystal growth method with enhanced oxygen partial pressure, have the same tetragonal structure ($I4_1/acd$) at room temperature. The mixed system shows no structural phase transition, so that the tetragonal structure is stable down to low temperatures. The oxygen partial pressure acts as control parameter for the gr…
Mechanism of Oxygen Reduction via Chemical Affinity in NiO/SiO2 Interfaces Irradiated with keV Energy Hydrogen and Helium Ions for Heterostructure Fabrication
First-principles DFT levels of calculations have been carried out in order to study the structural stability and electronic properties of hydrogen passivated graphene (H-graphene) clusters. Two different shaped clusters, rectangular and circular, consisting of 6 to 160 carbon atoms and hydrogen termination at the zigzag boundary edges have been studied. The relative stability of rectangular shaped cluster consisting 96 C-atoms found to be 1.5% greater than that of circular shape cluster consisting same number of C-atoms. In comparing circular and rectangular cluster containing same number of C…
We investigate the effect of oxygen vacancies and hydrogen dopants at the surface and inside slabs of LaAlO3, SrTiO3, and LaAlO3/SrTiO3 heterostructures on the electronic properties by means of electronic structure calculations as based on density functional theory. Depending on the concentration, the presence of these defects in LaAlO3 slab can suppress the surface conductivity. In contrast, in insulating SrTiO3 slabs already very small concentrations of oxygen vacancies or hydrogen dopant atoms induce a finite occupation of the conduction band. Surface defects in insulating LaAlO3/SrTiO3 het…
Ternary C_{x}N_{y}O_{z} compounds are actively researched as novel high energy density and ultrahard materials. Although some synthesis work has been performed at ambient conditions, very little is known about the high pressure chemistry of of C_{x}N_{y}O_{z} compounds. In this work, first principles variable-composition evolutionary structure prediction calculations are performed with the goal of discovering novel mixed C_{x}N_{y}O_{z} materials at ambient and high pressure conditions. By systematically searching ternary variable composition crystalline materials, the full ternary phase diagr…
A comprehensive phase diagram of lowest-energy structures and compositions of the rutile TiO_2(110) surface in equilibrium with a surrounding gas phase at finite temperatures and pressures has been determined using density functional theory in combination with a thermodynamic formalism. The exchange of oxygen, hydrogen, and water molecules with the gas phase is considered. Particular attention is given to the convergence of all calculations with respect to lateral system size and slab thickness. In addition, the reliability of semilocal density functionals to describing the energetics of the r…
Electrical conductivity, Hall effect and magnetoresistance of In$_2$O$_3$:Sn thin films deposited on a glass substrates at different temperatures and oxygen pressures, as well as the films treated in a hydrogen plasma, have been investigated in the temperature range 1.5-300 K. The observed temperature dependences of resistivity were typical for metallic transport of electrons except temperature dependence of resistivity of the In$_2$O$_3$:Sn film deposited in the oxygen deficient atmosphere. The electron concentration and mobility for the film deposited at 230$^\circ$C was larger than that for…
Magnesium dihydride ($\mgh$) stores 7.7 weight % hydrogen, but it suffers from a high thermodynamic stability and slow (de)hydrogenation kinetics. Alloying Mg with lightweight transition metals (TM = Sc, Ti, V, Cr) aims at improving the thermodynamic and kinetic properties. We study the structure and stability of Mg$_x$TM$_{1-x}$H$_2$ compounds, $x=[0$-1], by first-principles calculations at the level of density functional theory. We find that the experimentally observed sharp decrease in hydrogenation rates for $x\gtrsim0.8$ correlates with a phase transition of Mg$_x$TM$_{1-x}$H$_2$ from a f…
The present research work is focused on the effect of activation procedure on the hydrogen absorption-desorption properties of new rare earth transition metal compound based on Sm(Co0.6Fe0.2Zr0.16B0.04)7.5 composition. Crystal structure and composition is always connected to the maximum capacity of the intermetallic hydrides. For composite materials the thermodynamic properties of hydrogenation & dehydrogenation procedure are mostly explained through microstructure-microchemistry characteristics. Efficient hydrogen storage is direct connected to the desorbed hydrogen amount. The as hydrogenate…
This work presents an in-depth investigation of the properties of complexes composed of hydrogen, silicon or oxygen with carbon, which are major unintentional impurities in undoped GaN. This manuscript is a complement to our previous work on carbon--carbon and carbon-vacancy complexes. We have employed a first-principles method using Heyd-Scuseria-Ernzerhof hybrid functionals within the framework of generalized Kohn-Sham density functional theory. Two H--C, four Si--C and five O--C complexes in different charge states have been considered. After full geometry relaxations, formation energies, b…
The structural and electronic properties of the hydrides of silicene and germanene have been studied using ab initio calculations. The trend for the M-H (M=C, Si, Ge) bond lengths, and corresponding bond energies, is consistent with the atomic size trend, and comparable to those of MH_4 hydrides. Band structures were also obtained for the buckled configuration, which is the stable form for both silicene and germanene. Upon hydrogenation, both silicane (indirect gap) and germanane (direct gap) are semiconducting.
A Devanathan-Stachurski type diffusion cell made from a fuel cell assembly is designed to evaluate the gas transport properties of a proton exchange membrane as a function of cell temperature and gas pressure. Data obtained on this cell using the electrochemical monitoring technique (EMT) is used to estimate solubility and diffusion coefficient of oxygen (O2), carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen sulfide (H2S) in Nafion membranes. Membrane swelling and reverse-gas diffusion due to water flux are accounted for in the parameter estimation procedure. Permeability of all three gases was found to incr…
We present an evolutionary construction technique of formation energy convex hull to search for thermodynamically stable compounds. In this technique, candidates with a wide variety of chemical compositions and crystal structures are created by systematically applying evolutionary operators, "mating", "mutation", and "adaptive mutation", to two target compounds, and the convex hull is directly updated through the evolution. We applied the technique to carbon-hydrogen binary system at 10 GPa and obtained 15 hydrocarbons within the convex hull distance less than 0.5 mRy/atom: graphane, polybutad…
Oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrolysis, as an important reaction involved in water splitting and rechargeable metal-air battery, has attracted increasing attention for clean energy generation and efficient energy storage. Nickel/iron (NiFe)-based compounds have been known as active OER catalysts since the last century, and renewed interest has been witnessed in recent years on developing advanced NiFe-based materials for better activity and stability. In this review, we present the early discovery and recent progress on NiFe-based OER electrocatalysts in terms of chemical properties, syn…
The one dimensional model for the dynamic of hydrogen in lithium niobate is explained by adopting Morse potential. The diffused hydrogen substitutes Lithium and it makes bonding with one oxygen atom of a facet of oxygen-triangle. The bonds will be stretched to set up anharmonic vibration. The damped anharmonic oscillation is derived to explain the dynamics of hydrogen as an impurity. The thermal fluctuation is studied by Fokker Planck equation has an important role to determine the diffusion constant for substitutional hydrogen. The hydrogen diffusion constant and relaxation time are calculate…
In this review, we discuss disruptive decoupled water splitting schemes, in which the concurrent production of hydrogen and oxygen in close proximity to each other in conventional electrolysis is replaced by time- or space-separated hydrogen and oxygen production steps. We present the main decoupling strategies, including electrolytic and electrochemical chemical water splitting cycles, and the redox materials that facilitate them by mediating the ion exchange between the hydrogen and oxygen evolution reactions. Decoupled water splitting offers increased flexibility and robustness and provides…
Microsystems become part of everyday life but their application is restricted by lack of strong and fast motors (actuators) converting energy into motion. For example, widespread internal combustion engines cannot be scaled down because combustion reactions are quenched in a small space. Here we present an actuator with the dimensions 100x100x5 um^3 that is using internal combustion of hydrogen and oxygen as part of its working cycle. Water electrolysis driven by short voltage pulses creates an extra pressure of 0.5-4 bar for a time of 100-400 us in a chamber closed by a flexible membrane. Whe…
Experimental measurements have reported ultra-fast and radius-dependent water transport in carbon nanotubes which are absent in boron nitride nanotubes. Despite considerable effort, the origin of this contrasting (and fascinating) behaviour is not understood. Here, with the aid of machine learning-based molecular dynamics simulations that deliver first-principles accuracy, we investigate water transport in single-wall carbon and boron nitride nanotubes. Our simulations reveal a large, radius-dependent hydrodynamic slippage on both materials with water experiencing indeed a $\approx 5$ times lo…
The search for suitable materials for solid-state stationary storage of green hydrogen is pushing the implementation of efficient renewable energy systems. This involves rational design and modification of cheap alloys for effective storage in mild conditions of temperature and pressure. Among many intermetallic compounds described in the literature, TiFe-based systems have recently regained vivid interest as materials for practical applications since they are low-cost and they can be tuned to match required pressure and operation conditions. This work aims to provide a comprehensive review of…
Commercially available gases contain residual impurities leading to a background oxygen partial pressure of typically several 10^{-6} bar, independent of temperature. This oxygen partial pressure is inappropriate for the growth of some single crystals where the desired oxidation state possesses a narrow stability field. Equilibrium thermodynamic calculations allow the determination of dynamic atmosphere compositions yielding such self adjusting and temperature dependent oxygen partial pressures, that crystals like ZnO, Ga2O3, or Fe{1-x}O can be grown from the melt.
The experimental study of hydrogen bonds and their symmetrisation under extreme conditions is predominantly driven by diffraction methods, despite challenges of localising or probing the hydrogen subsystems directly. Until recently, H-bond symmetrisation has been addressed in terms of either nuclear quantum effects, spin crossovers or direct structural transitions; often leading to contradictory interpretations when combined. Here, we present high-resolution \textit{in-situ} $^1$H-NMR experiments in diamond anvil cells investigating a wide range of hydrogen bonded systems at pressure ranges of…
Superconductivity has entered the nickel age marked by enormous experimental and theoretical efforts. Notwithstanding, synthesizing nickelate superconductors remains extremely challenging, not least due to incomplete oxygen reduction and topotactic hydrogen. Here, we present density-functional theory calculations, identify a phonon mode as a possible indication for topotactic hydrogen and discuss the charge redistribution patterns around oxygen and hydrogen impurities.
We investigate a range of possible materials containing the supermolecular form of hydrogen comprising 13 hydrogen molecules arranged in an icosahedral arrangement. This supermolecule consists of freely rotating 12 hydrogen molecules in an icosahedral arrangement, enclosing another freely rotating molecule. To date, this supermolecule has only been observed in a compound with Iodane (HI). The extremely high hydrogen content suggests possible application in hydrogen storage so we examine the possibility of supermolecule formation at ambient pressures. We show that ab initio molecular dynamics c…
In situ high pressure neutron diffraction measured lengths of O H and H O pairs in hydrogen bonds in substances are shown to follow the correlation between them established from 0.1 MPa data on different chemical compounds. In particular, the conclusion by Nelmes et al that their high pressure data on ice VIII differ from it is not supported. For compounds in which the O H stretching frequencies red shift under pressure, it is shown that wherever structural data is available, they follow the stretching frequency versus H O (or O O) distance correlation. For compounds displaying blue shifts wit…
Due to the energy supply pressure caused by non-renewable fuels as well as the environment-related issues, the efficient conversion of solar-chemical energy via photo-induced water splitting is one of the promising strategies to address the existing problems. To strengthen the overall catalytic performance of photocatalytic hydrogen (H2) and oxygen (O2) evolution, the selection and construction of cocatalysts are crucial. Recently, the semiconductor photocatalysts have been well modified with the loaded cocatalysts as the active sites by extending the light harvest, promoting the electron sepa…
Inelastic neutron scattering was employed to study the crystal-field interaction in the strontium-doped rare-earth compounds R(x)Sr(1-x)CoO(3-z) (R=Pr, Nd, Ho, and Er). Particular emphasis is laid on the effect of oxygen deficiencies which naturally occur in the synthesis of these compounds. The observed energy spectra are found to be the result of a superposition of crystal fields with different nearest-neighbor oxygen coordination at the R sites. The experimental data are interpreted in terms of crystal-field parameters which behave in a consistent manner through the rare-earth series, there…
Molecule oxygen resembles 3d and 4f metals in exhibiting long-range spin ordering and electron strong correlated behaviors in compounds. The ferromagnetic spin ordering and half-metallicity, however, are quite elusive and have not been well acknowl-edged. In this article, we address this issue to study how spins will interact each other if the oxygen dimers are arranged in a dif-ferent way from that in the known super- and per-oxides by first principles calculations. Based on the results of structure search, thermodynamic study and lattice dynamics, we show that tetragonal α-BaNaO4 is a stable…
We demonstrate in this paper that high pressure can promote the reactions between the ionic compounds and H2 molecules and form thermodynamically stable hybrid compounds. Using crystal structure search method based on first principles calculations and particle swarm optimization algorithm, we show that many alkali halides XY (X=Na, K, Rb, Cs; Y=Cl, Br, I) can form stable hybrid compounds with various H2 compositions under different pressures that could be as low as 0.8 GPa (KIH2). Especially, the commonly known table salt, NaCl, can form stable NaClH2 and NaCl(H2)4 hybrid compounds under press…
The present study investigates the partial substitutions of Mn and Cu for Fe in the TiFe-system to gain better understanding of the role of elemental substitution on its hydrogen storage properties. The TiFe0.88-xMn0.02Cux (x = 0, 0.02, 0.04) compositions were studied. From X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Electron Probe Micro-Analysis (EPMA), it was found that all alloys are multi-phase, with TiFe as a major phase, together with \b{eta}-Ti and Ti4Fe2O-type as secondary precipitates, of all them containing also Mn and Cu. Increasing the Cu content augments the secondary phase amounts. Low quantity …
We discuss the applicability of the pseudopotential-like self-interaction correction (pSIC) to the study of defect energetics and electronic structure of In2O3. Our results predict that substitutional (at oxygen sites) and interstitial (at antibonding positions) hydrogen, as well as oxygen vacancies with charges +1 and +2, are stable configurations of defects in cubic In2O3; the former form shallow levels (only as substitutional defects), whereas the latter form deep levels. The band structure calculated with the pSIC shows an excellent agreement with experimental data. In particular, the gap …
The hybrid nanostructures of nitrogen doped carbon materials and nonprecious transition metals are among the most promising electrocatalysts to replace noble metal catalysts for renewable energy applications. However, the fundamental principles governing the catalytic activity of such hybrid materials remain elusive. Herein, we systematically explore the electrocatalytic properties of transition metals, transition metal oxides and carbides substrates covered by nitrogen-doped graphitic sheets for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Our first-principles calculations show that the graphitic sheet…
The object of this study is the kinetic process of solid-liquid first-order phase transition - melting of carbon dioxide CS-I hydrate with various cavity occupation ratios. The work was done within a framework of study on the local structure of water molecules. These include the time depending change of the short-range order at temperatures close to the melting point and comparison with hexagonal ice structure. Using molecular dynamics method, dependencies of the internal energy of the studied systems on the time of heating were found. Jumps in the internal energy of solids in the range at 275…
HCl, a 'textbook' example of a polar covalent molecule, is a well-known compound of hydrogen and chlorine. Inspired by the discovery of unexpected stable stoichiometries of sodium chlorides, we performed systematic searches for all stable compounds in the H-Cl system from ambient pressure to higher pressures up to 500 GPa using variable-composition ab initio evolutionary algorithm USPEX. We found several compounds that are stable under pressure, i.e. HCl, H$_2$Cl, H$_3$Cl, H$_5$Cl and H$_4$Cl$_7$, which display a rich variety of chemical bonding types. At ambient pressure, H$_2$, Cl$_2$ and HC…
Using first principles calculations, we show the high hydrogen storage capacity of a new class of compounds, metalloboranes. Metalloboranes are transition metal (TM) and borane compounds that obey a novel-bonding scheme. We have found that the transition metal atoms can bind up to 10 H2 molecules.
Point defects in diamond are of high interest as candidates for realizing solid state quantum bits, bioimaging agents, or ultrasensitive electric or magnetic field sensors. Various artificial diamond synthesis methods should introduce oxygen contamination in diamond, however, the incorporation of oxygen into diamond crystal and the nature of oxygen-related point defects are largely unknown. Oxygen may be potentially interesting as a source of quantum bits or it may interact with other point defects which are well established solid state qubits. Here we employ plane-wave supercell calculations …
The processing of promising magnetocaloric materials into spheres is one of the important issues on developing high-performance magnetic refrigeration systems. In the present study, we achieved in producing spherical particles of a giant magnetocaloric compound HoB2 by a crucible-free gas atomization process, despite its high melting point of 2350 C. The particle size distribution ranges from 100 to 710 micrometers centered at 212-355 micrometers with the highest yield of 14-20wt% of total melted electrode, which is suitable for magnetic refrigeration systems. The majority of the resulting par…
The stability of different stoichiometric H$_n$Br ($n$=1-7) compounds under pressure are extensively studied using density functional theory calculations. Five new energetically stable stoichiometries of H$_2$Br, H$_3$Br, H$_4$Br, H$_5$Br, and H$_7$Br were uncovered at high pressure. The results show that HBr is stable below 64 GPa, then decomposes into new compound H$_2$Br and Br$_2$ molecular crystal. For H$_2$Br and H$_3$Br compounds, they were found to become stable above 30 GPa and 8 GPa, respectively. In addition, we accidentally discovered the triangular H$_3^+$ species in H$_5$Br compo…
It has been recently revealed that strontium titanate (SrTiO$_3$) displays persistent photoconductivity with unique characteristics: it occurs at room temperature and lasts over a very long period of time. Illumination of SrTiO$_3$ crystals at room temperature with sub-bandgap light reduces the electrical resistance by three orders of magnitude and persists for weeks or longer (Tarun ${\it et\: al.}$, Phys. Rev. Lett. ${\bf 111}$, 187403 (2013)). Experiments indicate that oxygen vacancy and hydrogen play important roles, yet the microscopic mechanism responsible for this remarkable effect has …
