Discontinuous phase diagram of amorphous carbons

The short-range order and medium-range order of amorphous carbons demonstrated in experiments allow us to rethink whether there exist intrinsic properties hidden by atomic disordering. Here we presented six representative phases of amorphous carbons (0.1-3.4 g/cm3), namely, disordered graphene network (DGN), high-density amorphous carbon (HDAC), amorphous diaphite (a-DG), amorphous diamond (a-D), paracrystalline diamond (p-D), and nano-polycrystalline diamond (NPD), respectively, classified by their topological features and microstructural characterizations that are comparable with experiments. To achieve a comprehensive physical landscape for amorphous carbons, a phase diagram was plotted in the sp3/sp2 versus density plane, in which the counterintuitive discontinuity originates from the inherent difference in topological microstructures, further guiding us to discover a variety of phase transitions among different amorphous carbons. Intriguingly, the power law, log(sp3/sp2) proportional to rho n, hints at intrinsic topology and hidden order in amorphous carbons, providing an insightful perspective to reacquaint atomic disorder in non-crystalline carbons. A phase diagram for amorphous carbons was plotted in the sp3/sp2 versus density plane, where counterintuitive discontinuity originates from inherent differences in topological microstructures, further guiding us to discover various phase transitions.