Polaronic nonmetal–correlated metal crossover system β¤-CuxV2O5 With anharmonic copper oscillation and thermoelectric conversion performance

The crystal structures and electronic properties of βACuxV2O5 are explored through measurements of X-ray four-circle diffraction, electrical resistivity, thermoelectric power, thermal conductivity, magnetization, and electron paramagnetic resonance. For various compositions with 0.243 ≤ x ≤ 0.587, the crystal structures are redetermined through the anharmonic approach of the copper displacement factors, where the anharmonicity is reduced with increasing Cu concentration. The electron transport for x ≤ 0.45 is nonmetallic due to polaron hopping and the random potential of Cu ions, while for x = 0.60, a correlated Fermi-liquid state appears with a Wilson ratio of 1.3 and a Kadowaki–Woods ratio close to the universal value for heavy-fermion systems. At around x = 0.50, the polaronic bandwidth may broaden so that the Hubbard subbands caused by the electron correlation will overlap. The nonmetallic composition in the proximity of the nonmetal–metal crossover shows a dimensionless thermoelectric power factor of 10−2 at 300 K, partly due to the anharmonic copper oscillation. ©2017 The Physical Society of Japan