Hidden Structural and Superconducting Phase Induced in Antiperovskite Arsenide SrPd$_{3}$As
Enriching the material variation often contributes to the progress of
materials science. We have discovered for the first time antiperovskite
arsenide SrPd$_{3}$As and revealed a hidden structural and superconducting
phase in Sr(Pd$_{1-x}$Pt$_{x}$)$_{3}$As. The Pd-rich samples (0 $\leq$ x $\leq$
0.2) had the same non-centrosymmetric (NCS) tetragonal structure (a space group
of $I41md$) as SrPd$_{3}$P. For the samples with 0.3 $\leq$ x $\leq$ 0.7, a
centrosymmetric (CS) tetragonal structure ($P4/nmm$) identical to that of
SrPt$_{3}$P was found to appear, accompanied by superconductivity at a
transition temperature ($T_\mathrm{c}$) up to 3.7 K. In the samples synthesized
with Pt-rich nominal compositions (0.8 $\leq$ x $\leq$ 1.0),
Sr$_{2}$(Pd,Pt)$_{8-y}$As$_{1+y}$ with an intergrowth structure
(CS-orthorhombic with Cmcm) was crystallized. The phase diagram obtained for
Sr(Pd,Pt)$_{3}$As was analogous to that of (Ca,Sr)Pd$_{3}$P in that
superconductivity ($T_\mathrm{c}$ $\geq$ 2 K) occurred in the CS phases induced
by substitutions to the NCS phases. This study indicates the potential for
further material variation expansion and the importance of elemental
substitutions to reveal hidden phases in related antiperovskites.