Non-linear lattice response of Sm oxypnictides to hydrostatic pressure

Hydrostatic pressure Raman measurements at room temperature have been carried out on the SmFeAsO (Sm1111) series of oxypnictides with various substitutions (F for O and Co for Fe) and transition temperature in order to investigate lattice modifications and their connection to doping and superconductivity. Synchrotron XRD data on some of these compounds indicated that at low doping the lattice constants vary smoothly with pressure, but with further increasing of the carrier concentration there is a deviation from the normal equation of state and these effects are related with modifications in the superconducting FeAs4 tetrahedra. The hydrostatic pressure Raman measurements indicate that the A(1g) mode of the rare earth atom for the superconducting compounds deviates from the linear pressure dependence at the same pressures where the XRD results show pressure-induced lattice anomalies. A similar anomaly is found for the As phonon of the same symmetry. As in cuprates, the effect is diminished in the non-superconducting compounds and it is not related with the F substitution being present in the Sm(Fe1-xCox)AsO as well. The calculated Gruneisen parameters indicate a more anharmonic phonon for the Fe atom compared with the Sm and As atoms. (c) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.