Lu2SiO5 by single‐crystal X‐ray and neutron diffraction

The structure of dilutetium silicon pentaoxide, Lu₂SiO₅, has isolated ionic SiO₄ tetrahedral units and non‐Si‐bonded O atoms in distorted OLu₄ tetrahedra. The OLu₄ tetrahedra form edge‐sharing infinite chains and double O₂Lu₆ tetrahedra along the c axis. The edge‐sharing chains are connected to the O₂Lu₆ double tetrahedra by isolated SiO₄ units. The structure has been determined by neutron diffraction.     

Structural analysis of Gd6FeBi2 from single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction methods and electronic structure calculations

The crystal structure of the gadolinium iron bismuthide Gd₆FeBi₂ has been characterized by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction data and analyzed in detail using first‐principles calculations. The structure is isotypic with the Zr₆CoAl₂ structure, which is a variant of the ZrNiAl structure and its binary prototype Fe₂P (Pearson code hP9, Wyckoff sequence g f d a). As such, the structure is best viewed as an array of tricapped trigonal prisms of Gd atoms centered alternately by Fe and Bi. The magnetic‐ordering temperature of this compound (ca 350 K) is much higher than that of other rare‐earth metal‐rich phases with the same or related structures. It is also higher than the ordering temperature of many other Gd‐rich ternary phases, where the magnetic exchange is typically governed by Ruderman–Kittel–Kasuya–Yosida (RKKY) interactions. First‐principles calculations reveal a larger than expected Gd magnetic moment, with the additional contribution arising from the Gd 5d electrons. The electronic structure analysis suggests strong Gd 5d–Fe 3d hybridization to be the cause of this effect, rather than weak interactions between Gd and Bi. These details are of importance for understanding the magnetic response and explaining the high ordering temperature in this material.     

γ‐Alumina: a single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction study

The structure of γ‐alumina (Al_21+1/3□_2+2/3O₃₂) crystals obtained as a product of a corrosion reaction between β‐sialon and steel was refined in the space group Fdm. The oxygen sublattice is fully occupied. The refined occupancy parameters are 0.83 (3), 0.818 (13), 0.066 (14) and 0.044 (18) for Al ions in 8a, 16d, 16c and 48f positions, respectively. The Al ions are distributed over octa­hedral and tetra­hedral sites in a 63:37 ratio, with 6% of all Al ions occupying non‐spinel positions.     

The vanadate garnet Ca2NaCd2V3O12: a single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction study

Single crystals of the vanadate garnet Ca₂NaCd₂V₃O₁₂ (dicalcium sodium dicadmium trivanadate) were synthesized using the floating‐zone method and the crystal structure was investigated using single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction. We considered the effectiveness of substitution of the Y‐site cation with reference to previous structural studies of vanadate garnets. The structures of vanadate garnets are subject to geometric constraints similar to those of silicate garnets. These constraints force the tetrahedral–dodecahedral shared edge length in vanadate garnets to become shorter than the unshared dodecahedral edge length, as in ugrandite (uvarovite, grossular and andradite) garnets. However, the vanadate garnet Ca₂NaCd₂V₃O₁₂ exhibits the normal structural feature, similar to pyralspite (pyrope, almandine and spessartine) garnets, namely that the dodecahedral–dodecahedral shared edge length is shorter than the unshared dodecahedral edge length. With increasing ionic radius of the Y‐site cation, the atomic coordinates x, y and z of oxygen adopt values which satisfy Pauling's third rule.     

Undistorted linear Bi chains with hypervalent bonding in La3TiBi5 from single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction

The crystal structure of the lanthanum titanium bismuthide La₃TiBi₅ (Pearson code hP18, Wyckoff sequence b d g2) has been established from single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction data and analyzed in detail using first‐principles calculations. There are no anomalies pertaining to the atomic displacement parameter of the Ti site, previously reported based on a powder X‐ray diffraction analysis of this compound. The anionic substructure contains columns of face‐sharing TiBi₆ octahedra and linear Bi chains. Due to a significant La(5d) and Bi(6p) orbital mixing, a perfectly one‐dimensional character of the Bi chains is not realised, while a three‐dimensional electronic structure is established instead. The latter fact explains the stability of the polyanionic pnictide units against Peierls distortions. The hypervalent bonding in the Bi chains is reflected in a rather long Bi—Bi distance of 3.2264 (4) Å and a typical pattern of bonding and antibonding interactions, as revealed by electronic structure calculations.     

Lanthanum indium oxide from X‐ray powder diffraction

LaInO₃, a promising ion conductor for a holistic solid oxide fuel cell, was synthesized by a solid‐state reaction method. The structure was refined by the Rietveld method using X‐ray powder diffraction data. The structure of LaInO₃ is distorted by the in‐phase and antiphase tilting of oxy­gen octahedra in the a⁺b⁻b⁻ system of the InO₆ polyhedra. In the Pmna space group, the In atom lies on an inversion centre and the La atom and one of the O atoms lie on a mirror plane.     

Lead tartrate from X‐ray powder diffraction data

The structure of lead tartrate, Pb²⁺·C₄H₄O₆^2?, has been solved from X‐ray powder diffraction data. The cation exhibits ninefold coordination and the tartrate groups are linked through Pb?O contacts to form a three‐dimensional network.     

The tunnel manganese oxide Na4.32Mn9O18: a new Na+ site discovered by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction

The title compound, tetrasodium nonamanganese octadecaoxide, Na_4.32Mn₉O₁₈, was synthesized by reacting Mn₂O₃ with NaCl. One Mn atom occupies a site of 2/m symmetry, while all other atoms sit on mirror planes. The compound is isostructural with Na₄Ti₄Mn₅O₁₈ and suggestive of Mn³⁺/Mn⁴⁺ charge ordering. It has a double‐tunnel structure built up from double and triple chains of MnO₆ octahedra and single chains of MnO₅ square pyramids by corner sharing. Disordered Na⁺ cations occupy four crystallographic sites within the tunnels, including an unexpected new Na⁺ site discovered inside the large S‐shaped tunnel. A local‐ordering model is used to show the possible Na⁺ distribution, and the unit‐cell evolution during charging/discharging is explained on the basis of this local‐ordering model.     

Structural corroboration of two important building blocks of the anticancer drug eribulin mesylate through two‐dimensional NMR and single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction studies

Eribulin mesylate, one of the most synthetically challenging drugs to date, possesses 19 stereocentres in its structure and ascertaining the absolute stereochemistry at every stage of the 64‐stage synthesis is crucial. In our quest to synthesize eribulin, we identified two critical building blocks of this molecule, namely 3,4:6,7‐di‐O‐cyclohexylidene‐D‐glycero‐α‐L‐talo‐heptopyranose methanol monosolvate, C₁₉H₃₀O₇·CH₃OH, and (2R,3R,4R,5S)‐5‐allyl‐2‐[(S)‐2,3‐dihydroxypropyl]‐4‐[(phenylsulfonyl)methyl]tetrahydrofuran‐3‐ol, C₁₇H₂₄O₆S, for which two‐dimensional NMR (2D‐NMR) data were not sufficient to prove the absolute configuration. To ensure structural integrity, single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction data were obtained to confirm the structures. This information provides useful insights into the structural framework of the large eribulin mesylate molecule.     

New refinement of Ni5.20Sn8.7Zn4.16Cu1.04 and its non‐isotypy with Ni2Sn2Zn

The noncentrosymmetric space group P3m but a pseudocentric cubic crystal structure were reported for the compound Ni_5.20Sn_8.7Zn_4.16Cu_1.04 [Larsson et al. (1994). Acta Cryst. C 50 , 9–12]. The recently described Ni₂Sn₂Zn shows a closely related structure, although it is centrosymmetric and contains additional voids which are partially occupied. Therefore, a new refinement of Ni_5.20Sn_8.7Zn_4.16Cu_1.04 based on the originally published structure factors was performed. The results indicate that the structure can indeed be described in the centrosymmetric space group Pmm; no justification for the absence of the inversion centre could be found within the accuracy of the available data. In comparison with Ni₂Sn₂Zn, slight but significant differences were confirmed; consequently, the two structures are topologically related but not isotypic.     

A comparison of the X‐ray single‐crystal structure of Li3SbO4 with the Rietveld refinement

The X‐ray single‐crystal structure of trilithium antimony tetraoxide, Li₃SbO₄, is compared with the Rietveld refinement previously reported for the same material. An analysis of the geometric parameters and s.u.'s extracted from both refinements shows that, as expected, powder data yield a less accurate structure. Nevertheless, both refinements give correct geometric parameters within s.u.'s characteristic of each technique.     

Single Crystal X‐ray Structure Investigation and Electronic Structure Studies of La‐Deficient Nickel Stannide La4.87Ni12Sn24 Grown from Sn Flux

The cubic La_4.87Ni₁₂Sn₂₄ was synthesized in reactions involving liquid Sn. The compound crystallizes in the cubic syngony, space group Im3¯, Z = 2, cell parameter a = 11.9662(14) Å, and is related to the Gd₃Ni₈Sn₁₆ structure type previously refined from powder X‐ray data. The crystal structure of La_4.87Ni₁₂Sn₂₄ was solved and refined using single crystal X‐ray data to final R₁ = 2.67%, wR₂ = 6.92%. The refinement showed no mixed occupancy with Sn for the La(1) site, contrary to what was proposed for Gd₃Ni₈Sn₁₆. Instead, a partial occupancy of 87% was detected for the La(1) at 2a. Electronic structure calculations show that the system is metallic, and the density of states at the Fermi level falls at a peak with the highest contribution coming from La(1) atoms, if the compound with ideal occupancies La₅Ni₁₂Sn₂₄ is assumed. The deficiency of the La(1) site could therefore originate in the lowering of the total energy of the system due to the loss of 0.39 electrons per formula unit. Magnetic measurement data indicates nearly temperature independent Pauli paramagnetism. Theoretical estimation of the magnetic susceptibility after including core diamagnetic corrections agrees well with experiment.     

Clarithromycin form I determined by synchrotron X‐ray powder diffraction

The structure of the metastable form I polymorph of the macrolide antibiotic clarithromycin, C₃₈H₆₉NO₁₃, was determined by a powder diffraction method using synchrotron radiation. The space group of form I is P2₁2₁2. The initial model was determined by a molecular replacement method using the structure of clarithromycin form 0 as a search model, and the final structure was obtained through Rietveld refinements. In the form I crystal structure, the clarithromycin molecules are aligned parallel along the a axis in a head‐to‐tail manner with intermolecular hydrogen bonds between the hydroxy O atoms. The dimethylamine groups of the clarithromycin molecule interdigitate between neighbouring head‐to‐tail clarithromycin alignments. The novel crystal packing found in form I provides a mechanism that describes the transformation of form 0 to form I.     

Herringbone array of hydrogen‐bonded ribbons in 2‐ethoxybenzamide from high‐resolution X‐ray powder diffraction

In 2‐ethoxybenzamide, C₉H₁₁NO₂, the amide substituents are linked into centrosymmetric head‐to‐head hydrogen‐bonded dimers. Additional hydrogen bonds between adjacent dimers give rise to ribbon‐like packing motifs, which extend along the c axis and possess a third dimension caused by twisting of the 2‐ethoxyphenyl substituent with respect to the hydrogen‐bonded amide groups. The ribbons are arranged in a T‐shaped herringbone pattern and cohesion between them is achieved by van der Waals forces.     

[Pd(CH3COO)2]n from X‐ray powder diffraction data

The water‐insoluble title compound, catena‐poly­[palladium(II)‐di‐μ‐acetato‐κ⁴O:O′], [Pd(C₂H₃O₂)₂]_n, was obtained from a nitratopalladium solution and acetic acid as a pale‐pink powder. Ab initio crystal structure determination was carried out using X‐ray powder diffraction techniques. Patterson and Fourier syntheses were used for atom location and the Rietveld technique was applied for the final structure refinement. The structure consists of palladium acetate complexes connected into polymeric chains running along b, in which two Pd atoms are bridged by two acetate groups that are in a cis configuration with respect to one another. The unique Pd atom lies on a site with 2/m symmetry and the acetate moieties have imposed m symmetry; these are joined into infinite chains running along the b direction. The shortest Pd⋯Pd distance in the row is 2.9192 (1) Å. The planes of adjacent palladium complexes are inclined towards each other, the angle between the planes being approximately 30°.     

A single‐crystal neutron diffraction study of RbTiOAsO4

A rubidium titanyl arsenate single‐crystal has been studied by neutron diffraction (λ = 1.207 Å). The polished sample used was 5 × 3 × 2 mm and was cut from a crystal made by top‐seeded solution growth. The crystal showed severe extinction. It was, however, possible to obtain a structural model with well defined oxy­gen sites and reasonable anisotropic displacement parameters.     

Rhombohedral boron subnitride,B13N2, by X‐ray powder diffraction

The structure of the title compound consists of distorted B₁₂ icosahedra linked by N—B—N chains. The compound crystallizes in the rhombohedral space group Rm (No. 166). The unit cell contains four symmetry‐independent atom sites, three of which are occupied by boron [in the 18h, 18h (site symmetry m) and 3b (site symmetry m) Wyckoff positions] and one by nitrogen (in the 6c Wyckoff position, site symmetry 3m). Two of the B atoms form the icosahedra, while N atoms link the icosahedra together. The main feature of the structure is that the 3b position is occupied by the B atom, which makes the structure different from those of B₆O, for which these atom sites are vacant, and B_4+xC_1−x, for which this position is randomly occupied by both B and C atoms.     

Thermal and X‐ray powder diffraction studies of aliphatic polyester dendrimers

The syntheses and thermal and X‐ray powder diffraction analyses of three sets of aliphatic polyester dendrimers based on 2,2‐bis(hydroxymethyl)propionic acid as a repeating unit and 2,2‐dimethyl‐1,3‐propanediol, 1,5‐pentanediol, and 1,1,1‐tris(hydroxymethyl)ethane as core molecules are reported. These dendritic polyesters were prepared in high yields with the divergent method. The thermal properties of these biodendrimers were evaluated with thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry. The thermal decomposition of the compounds occurred around 250 °C for the hydroxyl‐ended dendrimers and around 150 °C for the acetonide‐protected dendrimers. In addition, the crystallinity of the lower generation dendrimers was evaluated with X‐ray powder diffraction. The highest crystallinity and the highest melting points were observed for the first‐generation dendritic compounds. The higher generation dendrimers showed weaker melting transitions during the first heating scan. Only the glass‐transition temperatures were observed in subsequent heating scans. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 5574–5586, 2004     

Ni5‐δSn4Zn (δ ∼ 0.25) from single‐crystal data

Work on the ternary Ni–Sn–Zn phase diagram revealed the existence of the title compound pentanickel tetratin zinc, Ni_3.17Sn_2.67Zn_0.67 [Schmetterer et al. (2012). Intermetallics, doi:10.1016/j.intermet.2011.05.025]. It crystallizes in the Ni₅Ga₃Ge₂ structure type (orthorhombic, Cmcm) and is related to the InNi₂ type (hexagonal, P6₃/mmc) of the neighbouring Ni₃Sn₂ high‐temperature (HT) phase, but is not a superstructure. The crystal structure was determined using single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction. Its homogeneity range was characterized using electron microprobe analysis. Phase analysis at various temperatures indicated that the phase decomposes between 1073 and 1173 K, where a more extended ternary solid solution of the Ni₃Sn₂ HT phase was found instead.