Figure 2. Formation energy ∆𝐸1 of M1-yBy binary phases as a function of B concentration y for M = Ti, Zr, Hf, V, Nb, Ta, Cr, Mo, W using Eq. 1. The formation energy of the hexagonal AlB2 type structure of MB2 upon B-vacancy formation is represented by (×), with increasing vacancy concentration going to the left. Binary phases with ∆𝐸1 < 0 are stable with respect to M and B. The black line represents the convex hull, excluding MB2-x when x ≠ 0. Phases which do not belong to the convex hull are represented by blue circles (○). See Table A2 for a complete list of competing phases.
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