Rare-Earth Metal Hexaborides: Synthesis, Properties, and Applications

Book excerpt: Rareearth hexaborides are a group of materials composed of octahedral boron units. They are useful for making advanced ceramics that have a wide range of industrial applications due to their low electronic work functions, hardness, refractory properties, low electrical resistances and specific thermal expansion coefficients. RareEarth Metal Hexaborides: Synthesis, Properties, and Applications provides a quick reference on rareearth metal hexaborides and their engineering applications. It provides a primer on rare earth elements followed by details of rareearth hexaboride structures, synthetic methods, and information about their alloys and ceramic composites. References to scholarly research are also provided for assisting advanced readers. This reference is a handy source of information for chemical engineering and materials science scholars, and anyone interested in the applied chemistry of rareearth metals and borides.