Thermodynamics of the B-Ca, B-Sr, and B-Ba systems: Applications for the fabrications of CaB₆, SrB₆, and BaB₆ thin films

Using the thermodynamic descriptions previously modeled in the boron-alkaline earth metal systems, B-Ca, B-Sr, and B-Ba, the pressure-temperature phase diagrams of these systems have been obtained in the present work, which provide insights into appropriate processing conditions for depositions of the divalent alkaline-earth metal hexaborides, Ca B6, Sr B6, and Ba B6. The present work indicates that the lower the growth pressures, the wider the growth temperature ranges and, in turn, the more favorite control of the growth of thin films for the ferromagnetic hexaborides.