Erbium incorporation in LiNbO3 by diffusion-doping

 The erbium incorporation into LiNbO₃ by diffusion doping is investigated in detail by means of Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry, Secondary Neutral Mass Spectrometry, Rutherford Backscattering, Atomic Force Microscopy, X-ray Standing Wave technique and optical site-selective spectroscopy. The diffusion of erbium in LiNbO₃ can be described by Fick’s laws of diffusion with a concentration-independent diffusion coefficient. The diffusion constants and activation energies for Z-cut (X-cut) LiNbO₃ are 4.8×10^-5 cm²/s (12.0×10^-5 cm²/s) and 2.28 eV (2.44 eV), respectively. A limited solubility of erbium in LiNbO₃ has to be taken into account increasing exponentially with rising temperature. During the first step of diffusion an Er _x Nb _y -oxide layer is formed at the surface of the sample acting as diffusion reservoir. Erbium is incorporated into LiNbO₃ on vacant Li-sites slightly shifted from the original Li-position along the (-c)-direction. Site-selective spectroscopy found four distinguishable energetically different erbium centres at this lattice site resulting from locally different symmetries of the crystal field. Received: 21 March 1996 / Accepted: 12 August 1996     

The crystal and molecular structure of ferricinium tetrachloroferrate

The crystal and molecular structure of ferricinium tetrachloroferrate was studied by X-ray diffraction. The compound crystallizes in space group Pna2₁ with 4 molecules C₁₀H₁₀Cl₄Fe₂ per unit cell. Data analysis was relatively difficult and direct methods of phase determination were very useful in the interpretation of the Patterson synthesis. The two rings in ferricinium are nearly parallel. The structural parameters are very similar to those previously published by others for ferrocene. This molecular structure and its vibrational properties seem to be in contrast to a general rule previously formulated by others for the infrared spectra of cyclopentadienyl compounds.