High pressure stability of the monosilicides of cobalt and the platinum group elements

Highlights: • We model the high-pressure phases of cobalt- and platinum-group-monosilicides. • CoSi, RuSi, OsSi transform with pressure from the ε-FeSi to the CsCl structure. • RhSi and IrSi transform with pressure from the MnP structure to the ε-FeSi structure. • PdSi and PtSi transform with pressure from the MnP structure to the CuTi structure. - Abstract: The high pressure stability of CoSi, RuSi, RhSi, PdSi, OsSi, IrSi and PtSi was investigated by static first-principles calculations up to 300 GPa at 0 K. As found experimentally, at atmospheric pressure, CoSi, RuSi and OsSi were found to adopt the cubic ε-FeSi structure (P2₁3) whereas RhSi, PdSi, IrSi and PtSi were found to adopt the orthorhombic MnP (Pnma) structure. At high pressure, CoSi, RuSi and OsSi show a phase transition to the CsCl structure (Pm3^¯m) structure at 270 GPa, 7 GPa and 6 GPa respectively. RhSi and IrSi were found to transform to an ε-FeSi structure at 10 GPa and 25 GPa. For PdSi and PtSi, a transformation from the MnP structure to the tetragonal CuTi structure (P4/nmm) occurs at 13 GPa and 20 GPa. The pressure dependence of the electronic density of states reveals that RuSi and OsSi are semiconductors in the ε-FeSi structure and become metallic in the CsCl structure. RhSi and IrSi are metals in the MnP structure and become semimetals in their high pressure ε-FeSi form. CoSi in the ε-FeSi configuration is a semimetal. PdSi and PtSi remain metallic throughout up to 300 GPa