A Simple Methodology to Gain Insights into the Physical and Compositional Features of Ternary and Quaternary Compounds Based on the Weight Percentages of Their Constituent Elements: A Proof of Principle Using Conventional EDX Characterizations

Ternary and quaternary compounds offer vast potential for tailoring material properties through compositional adjustments and complex interactions among their constituent elements. However, many of their compositional possibilities still need to be investigated. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) is crucial for determining elemental composition but is inadequate for identifying chemical bonds and physical properties. This work introduces a novel methodology using a stoichiometric deviation vector (SDV) to estimate the physical and compositional feature characteristics of Si, N, and O compounds by comparing actual molar ratios with ideal stoichiometric references. We validated this method by estimating Si-O bonds in silicon oxynitride samples, demonstrating strong agreement with FTIR and refractive index results. We also extended our proof of principle for SiAlON compounds and established an adaptable procedure to analyze compounds with more than three elements. This flexible methodology will significantly value the materials research community, providing valuable compositional features and physical insights by performing elemental EDX characterizations.