Low-temperature heat capacity of fullerite C-60 doped with deuteromethane

• The heat capacity C of fullerite doped with deuteromethane (CD4)(0.4)(C-60) has been investigated in the temperature interval 1.2-120K. The contribution Delta C-CD4 of the CD4 molecules to the heat capacity C has been isolated. It is shown that at T approximate to 120K the rotational motion of CD4 molecules in the octahedral voids of the C-60 lattice is weakly hindered. When the temperature is lowered to 80K, the rotational motion of the CD4 molecules changes from weakly hindered rotation to libration. In the range T = 1.2-30 K, Delta C-CD4 is described quite accurately by the sum of contributions from the translational and librational vibrations and tunneling rotation of CD4 molecules. The contribution of tunneling rotation to the heat capacity Delta C-CD4(T) is dominant below 5K. The effect of nuclear-spin conversion of the CD4 molecules on the heat capacity has been observed and the characteristic times for nuclear spin conversion between the lowest levels of the A- and T-species of CD4 molecules at T < 5K have been estimated. A feature observed in Delta C-CD4(T) near T = 5.5K is most likely a manifestation of a first-order phase transition in the orientational glass form of the solution. (C) 2012 American Institute of Physics. [doi: 10.1063/1.3677237]

Subject headings

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Fysik (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Physical Sciences (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Fullerite

C60

deuteromethane

CH4

CD4

heat capacity

specific heat capacity

molecular rotation

molecular libration

tunnelling rotation

glass

phase transition

fasta tillståndets fysik

Solid State Physics

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)