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Updated: Feb 18, 2026

Molten-Salt Synthesis of Complex Metal Oxide Nanoparticles
Published on: October 27, 2018
Synthesis, structure, and magnetic properties of the layered copper(II) oxide Na2Cu2TeO6
Jianxiao Xu1, Abdeljalil Assoud, Navid Soheilnia
1Department of Chemistry, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada N2L 3G1.
Abstract:
A new quaternary layered transition-metal oxide, Na2Cu2TeO6, has been synthesized under air using stoichiometric (with respect to the cationic elements) mixtures of Na2CO3, CuO, and TeO2. Na2Cu2TeO6 crystallizes in the monoclinic space group C2/m with a = 5.7059(6) A, b = 8.6751(9) A, c = 5.9380(6) A, beta = 113.740(2) degrees, V = 269.05(5) A3, and Z = 2, as determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The structure is composed of infinity(2)[Cu2TeO6] layers with the Na atoms located in the octahedral voids between the layers. Na2Cu2TeO6 is a green nonmetallic compound, in agreement with the electronic structure calculation and electrical resistance measurement. The magnetic susceptibility shows Curie-Weiss behavior between 300 and 600 K with an effective moment of 1.85(2) muB/Cu(II) and theta(c) = -87(6) K. A broad maximum at 160 K is interpreted as arising from short-range one-dimensional antiferromagnetic correlations. With the aid of the technique of magnetic dimers, the short-range order was analyzed in terms of an alternating chain model, with the surprising result that the stronger intrachain coupling involves a super-superexchange pathway with a Cu-Cu separation of >5 A. The J2/J1 ratio within the alternating chain refined to 0.10(1), and the spin gap is estimated to be 127 K.
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