Abstract: | The floating zone growth of magneto‐optical crystal YFeO3 has been investigated. The polycrystalline feed rod was prepared by a pressure of 250MPa and sintering at about 1500°C. A crack‐ free YFeO3 single crystal has been successfully grown. The crystal preferred to crystallize along <100> direction with about 10° deviation. The X‐ray rocking curve of the crystal has a FWHM of 24 arcsec, confirming the high crystal quality of the sample. The (100) plane was etched by hot phosphoric acid and the dislocation density was about 104/cm2. A thin outer layer with Y2O3‐rich composition was found at the periphery of as‐grown crystals, which was attributed to the Fe2O3 evaporation during growth. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim) |