Production of High Temperatures in the Chemical Laboratory: Examples of Application in Lanthanoid Oxo-Chemistry

High-temperature reactions have always been a fascinating although difficult field of experimentation for the chemist. In the case of solid-state reactions the problems with apparatus increase exponentially with rising temperature, so that especially in this area of inorganic chemistry the modern techniques of producing high temperatures—from the solar furnace to the high-power CO₂ laser—have yielded new and interesting possibilities, particularly in the field of metastable high-temperature compounds.