Compression mechanisms of ferroelectric PbTiO3 via high pressure neutron scattering

Switchable atomic displacements generate electric dipole moments in ferroelectric materials utilized in many contemporary devices. Lead titanate, a perovskite oxide with formula PbTiO₃, has been referred to as a textbook example of a prototype displacive ferroelectric and is a testing platform of widely used models of piezoelectric response of complex solid-solutions. PbTiO₃ has been addressed by experimental and computational studies, often with apparently conflicting conclusions. To date, hydrostatic pressure experiments have been interpreted in terms of a model in which the dipole moments gradually diminish with increasing pressure until a transition to a cubic phase, characterized by a zero average dipole moment, occurs. The model unrealistically assumes an even compression of the crystal. Here we show by high-pressure neutron powder diffraction measurements that a fast and slow shrinkage of 12-oxygen cages around Pb and octahedra around Ti, respectively, takes place. A phase diagram consolidating earlier and present results is given.

The high pressure gas capabilities at Oak Ridge National Laboratory's neutron facilities

The study of samples subjected to high pressure gas is an important asset in materials research and has consequently been a priority of the sample environment development at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory's (ORNL) neutron program. Such effort has resulted in the availability of an extensive combination of pressure cells and gas intensifiers (both commercially available and custom made). These resources are available across both neutron facilities at ORNL: the Spallation Neutron Source and the High Flux Isotope Reactor. Current capabilities include, for example, in situ measurements up to 6 kbar and a 3 kbar hydrogen-capable intensifier with a gas recovery feature. In this communication, we will review the existing suite of high pressure gas capabilities, with special emphasis on recent in-house developments. A number of examples will be presented to illustrate how such capabilities are being deployed on neutron beamlines to enable frontier science.

A suite-level review of the neutron powder diffraction instruments at Oak Ridge National Laboratory

The suite of neutron powder diffractometers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) utilizes the distinct characteristics of the Spallation Neutron Source and High Flux Isotope Reactor to enable the measurements of powder samples over an unparalleled regime at a single laboratory. Full refinements over large Q ranges, total scattering methods, fast measurements under changing conditions, and a wide array of sample environments are available. This article provides a brief overview of each powder instrument at ORNL and details the complementarity across the suite. Future directions for the powder suite, including upgrades and new instruments, are also discussed.

Novel diamond cells for neutron diffraction using multi-carat CVD anvils

Traditionally, neutron diffraction at high pressure has been severely limited in pressure because low neutron flux required large sample volumes and therefore large volume presses. At the high-flux Spallation Neutron Source at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, we have developed new, large-volume diamond anvil cells for neutron diffraction. The main features of these cells are multi-carat, single crystal chemical vapor deposition diamonds, very large diffraction apertures, and gas membranes to accommodate pressure stability, especially upon cooling. A new cell has been tested for diffraction up to 40 GPa with an unprecedented sample volume of ∼0.15 mm³. High quality spectra were obtained in 1 h for crystalline Ni and in ∼8 h for disordered glassy carbon. These new techniques will open the way for routine megabar neutron diffraction experiments.

Radiation attenuation by single-crystal diamond windows

As artificial diamond becomes more cost effective it is likely to see increasing use as a window for sample environment equipment used in diffraction experiments. Such windows are particularly useful as they exhibit exceptional mechanical properties in addition to being highly transparent to both X-ray and neutron radiation. A key application is in high-pressure studies, where diamond anvil cells (DACs) are used to access extreme sample conditions. However, despite their utility, an important consideration when using single-crystal diamond windows is their interaction with the incident beam. In particular, the Bragg condition will be satisfied for specific angles and wavelengths, leading to the appearance of diamond Bragg spots on the diffraction detectors but also, unavoidably, to loss of transmitted intensity of the beam that interacts with the sample. This effect can be particularly significant for energy-dispersive measurements, for example, in time-of-flight neutron diffraction work using DACs. This article presents a semi-empirical approach that can be used to correct for this effect, which is a prerequisite for the accurate determination of diffraction intensities.

The structure of CO₂ hydrate between 0.7 and 1.0 GPa

A deuterated sample of CO2 structure I (sI) clathrate hydrate (CO2·8.3 D2O) has been formed and neutron diffraction experiments up to 1.0 GPa at 240 K were performed. The sI CO2 hydrate transformed at 0.7 GPa into the high pressure phase that had been observed previously by Hirai et al. [J. Phys. Chem. 133, 124511 (2010)] and Bollengier et al. [Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 119, 322 (2013)], but which had not been structurally identified. The current neutron diffraction data were successfully fitted to a filled ice structure with CO2 molecules filling the water channels. This CO2+water system has also been investigated using classical molecular dynamics and density functional ab initio methods to provide additional characterization of the high pressure structure. Both models indicate the water network adapts a MH-III "like" filled ice structure with considerable disorder of the orientations of the CO2 molecule. Furthermore, the disorder appears to be a direct result of the level of proton disorder in the water network. In contrast to the conclusions of Bollengier et al., our neutron diffraction data show that the filled ice phase can be recovered to ambient pressure (0.1 MPa) at 96 K, and recrystallization to sI hydrate occurs upon subsequent heating to 150 K, possibly by first forming low density amorphous ice. Unlike other clathrate hydrate systems, which transform from the sI or sII structure to the hexagonal structure (sH) then to the filled ice structure, CO2 hydrate transforms directly from the sI form to the filled ice structure.

Observation of fractional Stokes-Einstein behavior in the simplest hydrogen-bonded liquid

Quasielastic neutron scattering has been used to investigate the single-particle dynamics of hydrogen fluoride across its entire liquid range at ambient pressure. For T>230 K, translational diffusion obeys the celebrated Stokes-Einstein relation, in agreement with nuclear magnetic resonance studies. At lower temperatures, we find significant deviations from the above behavior in the form of a power law with exponent xi=-0.71+/-0.05. More striking than the above is a complete breakdown of the Debye-Stokes-Einstein relation for rotational diffusion. Our findings provide the first experimental verification of fractional Stokes-Einstein behavior in a hydrogen-bonded liquid, in agreement with recent computer simulations [S. R. Becker, Phys. Rev. Lett. 97, 055901 (2006)10.1103/PhysRevLett.97.055901].

On the variation of the structure of liquid deuterium fluoride with temperature

The structure of liquid deuterium fluoride has been measured using pulsed neutron diffraction and high energy x-ray diffraction techniques as a function of temperature. The neutron experiments were performed at T=296+/-2 K, 246+/-2 K, and 193+/-2 K and the x-ray measurements carried out at 296+/-2 K and 195+/-2 K. The x-ray pair correlation functions, which are dominated by fluorine-fluorine interactions, show the first peak at approximately 2.53+/-0.05 A remains very nearly invariant with decreasing temperature. Peaks around 4.5 and 5.0 A also appear at both temperatures in the x-ray data. In contrast, the intermolecular peaks in the total neutron pair correlation function show that significant systematic local structural changes occur as the temperature is lowered. The first intermolecular peak position shortens from 1.64+/-0.05 A at 296 K to 1.56+/-0.05 A at 195 K. Although there are overlapping contributions from the intermolecular hydrogen-fluorine and hydrogen-hydrogen correlations, it is clear that the temperature dependent structural changes are largely due to a rearrangement of the deuterium atom positions in the fluid. By comparison with partial structure factor data the hydrogen bonds appear to become more linear at lower temperatures.