Synthesis of anti-perovskite-type carbides and nitrides from metal oxides and melamine

Four anti-perovskite-type compounds, ZnNNi(3), ZnCNi(3), SnNCo(3), and SnCCo(3), are synthesised through reactions between metal oxides and organic compound melamine (C(3)H(6)N(6)). ZnNNi(3) and ZnCNi(3) are selectively synthesised by choosing different reaction temperatures and nominal oxide-to-melamine ratios. SnNCo(3) is synthesised for the first time by this melamine method. Resistivity, magnetisation, and heat capacity measurements reveal that SnNCo(3) is a correlated metal with a high density of states at the Fermi level. The results demonstrate that this feasible synthetic route using melamine is useful in the search for complex metal carbides and nitrides toward novel functional materials.