Designation of Intra-layer and Intercalated High Entropy Quasi-2D Compounds

Abstract

Here, we designed two promising schemes to realize the high-entropy structure in a series of quasi-two-dimensional compounds, transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs). In the intra-layer high-entropy plan, (HEM)X2 compounds with high-entropy structure in the MX2 slabs were obtained, here HEM means high-entropy metals, such as TiZrNbMoTa. And superconductivity with a Tc~7.4 K was found in a Mo-rich HEMX2. On the other hand, in the intercalation plan, we intercalated HEM-atoms (FeCoCrNiMn) into the gap between the sandwiched-MX2 slabs resulting in a series of (HEM)xMX2 compounds, x in the range of 0~0.5, in which HEM is mainly composed of 3d transition metal elements, such as FeCoCrNiMn. As the introduction of multi-component magnetic atoms, ferromagnetic spin-glass states with strong 2D characteristics ensued. Tuning the x content, three kinds of two in the high-entropy intercalated layer were observed including the 1*1 triangular lattice and two kinds of superlattices \sqrt3*\sqrt3 and \sqrt3*2 in x=0.333 and x>0.5, respectively. Meanwhile, the spin frustration in the two-dimensional high-entropy magnetic plane will be enhanced with the development of \sqrt3*\sqrt3 and will be reduced significantly when changing into the \sqrt3*2 phase. The high-entropy TMDCs and versatile two-dimensional high-entropy structures found by us possess great potentials to find new physics in low-dimensional high-entropy structures and future applications.