Sodium rare earth metal amides Na3RE(NH2)6(RE= La–Nd, Er, Yb) from ammonothermal synthesis

The amides Na3RE(NH2)6have been obtained from the metals in supercritical ammonia under ammonobasic conditions at 573 K and 70 MPa for RE= La–Nd, and at 473 K and 40 MPa for RE= Er, Yb. All compounds are formed in the hot zone within a temperature gradient, indicating a retrograde solubility under the applied process conditions. These amides represent soluble intermediates in ammonothermal binary rare earth metal nitride synthesis. All compounds were obtained as microcrystalline powders, while single crystals of those amides containing the heavier rare earth metals could be isolated. The crystal structures were solved and refined from single-crystal and powder X-ray diffraction intensity data. The results of vibrational spectroscopy are reported. Thermal analysis measurements under inert gas atmosphere demonstrated a decomposition to the respective black binary rare earth metal nitrides REN1−δ.