| The metal flux method has been recently suggested as a preparative tool to synthesize intermetallic compounds. Our group initiated the investigations on the quaternary systems RE/TM/Al/Tr (RE = rare earth metal, TM = transition metal, Tr = tetrelide) using Al as a flux. In this dissertation we employed the Al flux to study the systems RE/Au/Al/Ge, TM/Al/Tr, RE/Ni/Al and RE/Al/Sb aiming at discovering new materials with interesting physical properties.; We extended the studies involving first row transition metals to the third row transition metals such as Au. Our exploratory investigations led to the discovery of two quaternary families REAuAl4Ge2 and REAuAl4(Au,Ge1-x)2, the structures of which are related and both can be represented as alternating stacking of RE layers and AuAl4Ge2 (or AuAl4(AuxGe 1-x)2) slabs along the c-axis.; By studying the ternary systems TM/Al/Tr (TM = V, Co) in liquid aluminum, we obtained new ternary compounds V2Al5Ge5, Co19Al45Si10-x (x = 0.13) and Co5Al 14Si2. The structure of V2Al5Ge 5 features pentagonal columns composed of Al and Ge atoms with the V atoms forming a long-short alternating chain residing in the center of the column. Both Co19Al45Si10-x (x = 0.13) and Co5Al14Si2 show exceptionally complex structures and large unit cells. Co5Al14Si2 shows interesting thermal oxidation resistance up to 1000°C which is due to the formation of an Al2O3 layer on the surface of the crystals.; The ternary compounds Yb3Ni5Al19 and Yb1.1Ni3Al8.9, are particularly interesting due to their unusual physical properties such as mixed valence and metamagnetic transition. The thermal expansion properties of Yb3Ni5Al 19 as well as the magnetic properties with substitutions of Ni by the other transition metals (e.g. Mn, Fe and Cu) were studied. During the study of substituting Ni by Fe, we discovered a new quaternary compound YbNi 2-xFexAl8. Both magnetic properties and Mossbauer spectra show that the Fe atoms do not carry a magnetic moment. Temperature dependent magnetic susceptibility indicates that the Yb atoms are in intermediate oxidation state.; During the investigations of the system Yb/Al/Sb, we isolated two new Zintl phases Yb3AlSb3 and Yb9Al3Sb 9 from molten Al, among which Yb3AlSb3 is the more thermodynamically stable form. These two compounds exhibit related structure types with the AlSb4 tetrahedral unit as the common feature, and the Yb ions are in divalent oxidation state. |
