Instability of metallic phase in CuIr2Se4 at high pressure

We report the temperature and pressure dependence of the electrical resisti vity in CuIr2Se4. The measurement was performed from room temperature to 2K at different pressures up to 6 GPa. The electrical resistivity at the low temperature (4.2 K) shows pressure-insensitive up to 1.5 GPa and increases rapidly at higher pressures. Above 1.5 GPa, an anomalous hump appears in th e temperature dependence of the electrical resistivity around 100 K. In the pressure range, 2.6 < P < 4 GPa, the resistance minimum appears around 15 K. The pressure effect on the electrical resistivity in CuIr2Se4 might be i nterpreted in terms of the pressure-induced band gap opening by electron co rrelation among Ir-Sd electrons. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.