Ferroelectric lithium tantalate—III. Temperature dependence of the structure in the ferroelectric phase and the para-electric structure at 940°K

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Abstract

The neutron scattering from a single crystal of LiTaO3 (Curie temperature 907°K) has been measured at 760, 820, 885 and 940°K, and has been remeasured at 298°K. Least squares structural refinement of the five data sets shows that as the temperature approaches Tc the oxygen atom approaches the position x, 13, 112, with respect to Ta at the origin, in space group R3c. The temperature variation of the oxygen y- and z-coordinates is very similar to that of the spontaneous polarization. The lithium atom position below Tc remains essentially invariant as a function of temperature. At Tc, the oxygen atom occupies the position x, 13, 112, the lithium atom becomes disordered and distributed over the positions 00z and 0, 0, 12-z, and the tan alum atom becomes located at an inversion center, in space group R3c. The lithium atom sites above Tc lie 0.374 Å on either side of the oxygen atom plane at z = 14.

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Work at Brookhaven supported by the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.

Guest Scientists, Brookhaven National Laboratory.

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