New high pressure allotrope of nitrogen solves a chemical mystery
‘Black nitrogen’ shares similarities with other elements in its group on the periodic table – answering the question of why nitrogen normally doesn’t
A high pressure allotrope of nitrogen, formed at 1.4 million times atmospheric pressure, has the same two-dimensional atomic structure as some forms of other elements in its group on the periodic table, such as phosphorus and arsenic, according to researchers.
The finding – published a few days apart by two independent groups of scientists – explains a long-standing anomaly of the periodic table: why doesn’t high pressure nitrogen show similarities with other members of its group?