ChemInform Abstract: Syntheses, Crystal Structures and Magnetic Properties of Ternary Rare-Earth Zirconium Selenides, Ln2ZrSe5(Ln: Ce-Nd)

Three new ternary rare-earth zirconium chalcogenides, Ce 2 ZrSe 5 ( 1 ), Pr 2 ZrSe 5 ( 2 ) and Nd 2 ZrSe 5 ( 3 ), have been synthesized by a facile solid-state route with boron as the reducing reagent. They crystallize in the space group Pnma of the orthorhombic system, belonging to the U 3 Se 5 structure type. Their 3-D structures are constructed by parallel polyanionic {[ZrSe 5 ] 6– } n chains and LnSe 8 bicapped trigonal prisms. The magnetic susceptibilities' data indicate their antiferromagnetic-like behavior without magnetic order down to 2 K. The structural relationships among several similar structures are discussed, together with the lanthanide contraction in the Ln 2 ZrSe 5 system.