Nanostructured crystals of the fluorite phases Sr1 − x R x F2 + x (R—rare-earth elements) and their ordering: II. Crystal structure of the ordered Sr4Lu3F17 phase

Crystallography Reports - The crystal structure of the ordered phase Sr4Lu3F17 prepared by directed crystallization of the melt has been investigated. The crystals have a trigonally distorted...     

Synthesis,phase composition,and magnetic properties of iron nanowires prepared in the pores of polymer track-etched membranes

Arrays of iron nanowires prepared by the method of galvanic filling of polymer track-etched membrane pores (matrix synthesis) under different electrolysis modes and electrolyte temperatures have been studied. The conditions of the synthesis have been analyzed. The optimal composition and electrolyte temperature have been found. The phase composition and magnetic properties of nanowires have been studied using the methods of electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, elemental energy-dispersive microanalysis, and Mössbauer spectroscopy. The average nanowire diameter is 100–200 nm. The length varies from 6 to 10 μm. The surface density is ～10⁸ cm^?2 at the average distance to each other of about 1 μm. It has been established that the basis of nanowires is formed by the metal iron nanocomposite that manifests the magnetic properties of bulk α-Fe. It has been found that the preferred orientation of the magnetization inside the iron nanowires arises for an array prepared at a potential of ?750 mV.     

Mechanical, structural, and spectroscopic properties of C70 fullerite phases produced under high pressure and shear

X-ray diffraction patterns, Raman spectra, and the hardness of C₇₀ fullerite subjected to a high pressure with shear are investigated. It is shown that these conditions favor the phase transformation of molecular fullerite into the hard amorphous phase. The hardness of a specimen removed from a diamond anvil cell loaded up to 26 GPa under shear deformation applied is found to be equal to 30 GPa.     

Supersmooth and modified surface of sapphire crystals: Formation,characterization, and applications in nanotechnologies

The results of studying the state of the surface of sapphire crystals by a complex of methods in different stages of crystal treatment are considered by an example of preparing sapphire substrates with a supersmooth surface. The possibility of purposefully forming regular micro- and nanoreliefs and thin transition layers using thermal and thermochemical impacts are considered. The advantages of sapphire substrates with a modified surface for forming heteroepitaxial CdTe and ZnO semiconductor films and ordered ensembles of gold nanoparticles are described. The results of the experiments on the application of crystalline sapphire as a material for X-ray optical elements are reported. These elements include total external reflection mirrors and substrates for multilayer mirrors, output windows for synchrotron radiation, and monochromators working in the reflection geometry in X-ray spectrometers. In the latter case, the problems of the defect structure of bulk crystals sapphire and the choice of a method for growing sapphire crystals of the highest structural quality are considered.     

Station for X-ray structural analysis of materials and single crystals (including nanocrystals) on a synchrotron radiation beam from the wiggler at the Siberia-2 storage ring

The design of the station for structural analysis of polycrystalline materials and single crystals (including nanoobjects and macromolecular crystals) on a synchrotron radiation beam from the superconducting wiggler of the Siberia-2 storage ring is described. The wiggler is constructed at the Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Siberian Division of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The X-ray optical scheme of the station involves a (1, ?1) double-crystal monochromator with a fixed position of the monochromatic beam and a sagittal bending of the second crystal, segmented mirrors bent by piezoelectric motors, and a (2θ, ω, φ) three-circle goniometer with a fixed tilt angle. Almost all devices of the station are designed and fabricated at the Shubnikov Institute of Crystallography of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The Bruker APEX11 two-dimensional CCD detector will serve as a detector in the station.     

Nanostructured crystals of fluorite phases Sr1 − x R x F2 + x and their ordering: 9. The defect crystal and real structure of quenched fluorite phases Sr1 − x Ce x F2 + x (x = 0–0.5)

A Sr_0.7Ce_0.3F_2.3 crystal (CaF₂ type, sp. gr. $Fm\bar 3m$ ), obtained by quenching from melt, has been studied for the first time by X-ray diffraction. Fluorine vacancies and interstitial anions are found in the 8c and 32f sites, respectively. The defect ratio in the Sr_0.7Ce_0.3F_2.3 structure corresponds to the tetrahedral cluster configuration of defects {Sr_{4 ? n} Ce _n F₂₆}. The defect structure of quenched (at a rate of ～25 K/min) crystal differs from that of a crystal grown from melt (cooling at a rate of ～3 K/min) by the displacement of some cations (presumably Ce³⁺) along the threefold axis to the 32f site and the anisotropy of thermal vibrations of ions in the cluster core (F _int(32f)3). The concentration dependence of the lattice parameters of quenched Sr_{1 ? x} Ce _x F_{2 + x} phases (x = 0–0.5) is described by a third-order polynomial: a = 5.80009 + 1.166518 × 10^?3 x ? 1.124969 × 10^?5 x ² + 8.258155 × 10^?8 x ³. The compositional dependence of microdistortions is also nonlinear; maximum microdistortions are observed in the SrF₂ crystal. They decrease with an increase in the cerium concentration x to ～ 0.35. The minimum in the range x = 0.30–0.35 correlates with a composition corresponding to the peak (at x ～ 0.29) in the melting curves of the fluorite phase estimated from the phase diagram of the SrF₂-CeF₃ system (the method of thermal analysis).     

The belok station for protein crystallography on the synchrotron radiation beam from the bending magnet in the Sibir-2 storage ring

Design modifications made in the initial project of the Belok station in the Sibir-2 storage ring and the alignment and calibration methods are considered. The main operating parameters of the station are reported. Protein single crystals in a capillary at T = 293 K and without a capillary at T = 95 K, powders (angular resolution Δ2? = 0.04°), and nanocrystalline Na and Cl₂ precipitates (sizes, shape, and orientation) in electron-irradiated NaCl crystals have been investigated. The problem of focusing of a short-wavelength synchrotron radiation beam with sagittal bending of the second crystal in the double-crystal monochromator at a limited source-to-sample distance is solved in the Belok project.     

Defect structure and ionic conductivity of Ca1 ? xScxF2 + x (0.02 ≤ x ≤ 0.15) single crystals

Single crystals of the Ca_{1 − x} Sc _x F_{2 + x} (x = 0.106, 0.132, 0.156) solid solutions (CaF₂ structure type, space group Fm m) are investigated using X-ray diffraction. It is revealed that the crystals under investigation contain vacancies in the 8c positions and interstitial fluorine ions in the 48i positions. The coordination number of Sc³⁺ ions in the structure of the Ca_{1 −x} Sc _x F_{2 + x} solid solutions is equal to eight. The specific features of the concentration dependences of the ionic conductivity and the activation energy of ion transfer for the Ca_{1 − x} Sc _x F_{2 + x} (0.02 ≤ x ≤ 0.15) solid solutions are explained in the framework of the percolation model of conducting “defect regions.” The percolation threshold equal to 3–5 mol % ScF₃ corresponds to the model of [Ca_{14 − n} Sc _n F₆₈] octacubic clusters containing fluorine ions in the 48i positions. The ionic conductivity of the Ca_{1 − x} Sc _x F_{2 + x} solid solutions is analyzed in comparison with the change in this characteristic for the series of Ca_0.8 R _0.2F_2.2 crystals with rare-earth elements. Original Russian Text ? E.A. Sulyanova, V.N. Molchanov, N.I. Sorokin, D.N. Karimov, S.N. Sulyanov, B.P. Sobolev, 2009, published in Kristallografiya, 2009, Vol. 54, No. 4, pp. 612–622.     

Comparison of the Structural Features of Micron and Submicron Vaterite Particles and Their Efficiency for Intranasal Delivery of Anesthetic to the Brain

Crystallography Reports - Nanostructured spherical calcium carbonate particles with average sizes of 3.8 µm and 550 nm have been fabricated. Optimal conditions for adsorption of central...