0000000000365024
AUTHOR
Francesco Rocca
X-ray Absorption Study of Gallium Arsenide at the Ga and As K-edges
We present X-ray absorption study of gallium arsenide at the Ga and As K-edges. The analysis of the X-ray absorption fine structure was done in the framework of the multiple-scattering theory. Both XANES and EXAFS regions are considered. The calculated signals are in very good agreement with experimental data. It is shown that for both edges multiple-scattering contributions are negligible for wavevector values greater than 3 Å-1, and single-scattering analysis can be used without significant loss of accuracy in that region.
Negative thermal expansion in cuprite-type compounds: A combined synchrotron XRPD, EXAFS, and computational study of Cu2O and Ag2O
Cuprite-type oxides (Cu2O and Ag2O) are framework structures composed by two interpenetrated networks of metal-sharing M4O tetrahedra (M = Cu, Ag). Both compounds exhibit a peculiar negative thermal expansion (NTE) behaviour over an extended temperature range (9 240 K for Cu2O, 30-470 K for Ag2O). High-accuracy synchrotron powder diffraction and EXAFS measurements were performed from 10 K up to the decomposition temperature to understand the nature of the NTE effects. The critical comparison of the diffraction and absorption results concerning the temperature dependence of the interatomic distances and of the atomic vibrational parameters proves to be fundamental in defining the local dynam…
Ab initio molecular dynamics simulations of the Sc K-edge EXAFS of scandium trifluoride
Scandium fluoride ScF3 has a simple cubic structure and attracts attention due to its large negative thermal expansion (NTE) over a wide range of temperatures (0-1100 K). In this study we present ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) simulations of ScF3 and their validation using the Sc K-edge EXAFS spectra in the temperature range from 300 K to 1000 K measured at the XAFS beamline of ELETTRA. The obtained results allow an assessement of the employed AIMD model and provide insight into the local structure and the lattice dynamics of ScF3 beyond the harmonic approximation. A strong anisotropy of the fluorine atom vibrations in the direction orthogonal to the -Sc-F-Sc- chain is observed. An exp…
Interpretation of unexpected behavior of infrared absorption spectra ofScF3beyond the quasiharmonic approximation
Scandium fluoride (${\mathrm{ScF}}_{3}$), having cubic ${\mathrm{ReO}}_{3}$-type structure, has attracted much scientific attention due to its rather strong negative thermal expansion (NTE) in the broad temperature range from 10 to 1100 K. Here we use the results of diffraction and extended x-ray absorption fine-structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy to interpret the influence of NTE on the temperature dependence of infrared absorption spectra of ${\mathrm{ScF}}_{3}$. Original infrared absorption and EXAFS experiments in a large temperature range are presented and interpreted using ab initio lattice dynamics simulations within and beyond quasiharmonic approximations. We demonstrate that ab initio e…
Local structure of perovskites ReO3and ScF3with negative thermal expansion: interpretation beyond the quasiharmonic approximation
We propose an approach beyond the quasiharmonic approximation for interpretation of EXAFS and XRD data and for ab initio calculations of electronic and vibration properties of materials with negative thermal expansion. Ab initio electronic structure and lattice dynamics calculations for cubic and distorted ScF3 were performed using the linear combination of atomic orbitals (LCAO) method. The band gap obtained in calculations for ScF3 is equal to 10.54 eV and agree well with the expected value. The calculated infrared spectra of F displaced (FD) cubic ScF3 allow us to predict that its mean Sc-F-Sc angle within NTE deviates from 180 degree.
Local dynamics and phase transition in quantum paraelectric SrTiO3 studied by Ti K-edge x-ray absorption spectroscopy
Strontium titanate is a model quantum paraelectric in which, in the region of dominating quantum statistics, the ferroelectric instability is inhibited due to nearly complete compensation of the harmonic contribution into ferroelectric soft mode frequency by the zero- point motion contribution. The enhancement of atomic masses by the substitution of 16 O with 18O decreases the zero-point atomic motion, and low-T ferroelectricity in SrTi18O3 is realized. In this study we report on the local structure of Ti in SrTi16O3 and SrTi18O3 investigated by Extended X-ray Absorption Fine Structure measurements in the temperature range 6 - 300 K.