High-Pressure Synthesis of Novel Boron Oxynitride B6N4O3 with Sphalerite Type Structure

A novel crystalline boron oxynitride (BON) phase has been synthesized under static pressures exceeding 15 GPa and temperatures above 1900 °C, from molar mixtures of B2O3 and h-BN. The structure and composition of the synthesized product were studied using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, electron diffraction, automated diffraction tomography, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS). BON shows a hexagonal cell (R3m, Z = 3) with lattice parameters a = 2.55(5) A and c = 6.37(13) A, and a crystal structure closely related to the cubic sphalerite type. The EELS quantification yielded 42 at % B, 35 at % N, and 23 at % O (B:N:O ≈ 6:4:3). E…