Characterization and decomposition of the natural van der Waals heterostructure SnSb2Te4 under compression

This joint experimental and theoretical study of the structural, vibrational and electrical properties of rhombohedral SnSb2Te4 at high pressure unveils the internal mechanisms of its compression. The equation of state and the internal polyhedral compressibility, the symmetry and behavior of the Raman-active modes and the electrical behavior of this topological insulator under compression have been discussed and compared with the parent binary alpha-Sb2Te3 and SnTe compounds and with related ternary compounds. Our X-ray diffraction and Raman measurements together with theoretical calculations, which include topological electron density and electronic localization function analysis, evidence the presence of an isostructural phase transition around 2 GPa and a Fermi resonance around 3.5 GPa. The Raman spectrum of SnSb2Te4 shows vibrational modes that are forbidden in rocksalt SnTe; thus showing a novel way to experimentally observe the forbidden vibrational modes of some compounds. Additionally, since SnSb2Te4 is an incipient metal, like its parent binary compounds, we establish a new criterion to identify the recently proposed metavalent bonding in complex materials when different bond characters coexist in the system. Finally, SnSb2Te4 exhibits a pressure-induced decomposition into the high-pressure phases of its parent binary compounds above 7 GPa, which is supported by an analysis of their formation enthalpies. We have framed the behavior of SnSb2Te4 within the extended orbital radii map of BA2Te4 compounds, which paves the way to understand the pressure behavior and stability ranges of other layered van der Waals-type compounds with similar stoichiometry.