The physical properties and structural evolution of the MX2-type solid solution Au1−xPdxTe2 are reported. The end member AuTe2 is a normal metal with a monoclinic distorted CdI2-type structure with preformed Te-Te dimers. A monoclinic--trigonal structural phase transition at a finite temperature occurs upon Pd substitution and is suppressed to zero temperature near x = 0.55, and a superconducting phase with a maximum Tc = 4.65 K emerges. A clear indication of strong coupling superconductivity is observed near the composition of the structural instability. The competitive relationship between Te-Te dimers and superconductivity is proposed.
@article{arxiv.1809.01297,
title = {Composition-induced structural instability and strong-coupling superconductivity in Au1-xPdxTe2},
author = {Kazutaka Kudo and Hiroyuki Ishii and Minoru Nohara},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1809.01297},
year = {2018}
}