paper

Diffuse Neutron Scattering Study of a Disordered Complex Perovskite Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)O3 Crystal

arXiv:cond-mat/0106051 · doi:10.1103/PhysRevB.64.212101

Abstract

Diffuse scattering around the (110) reciprocal lattice point has been investigated by elastic neutron scattering in the paraelectric and the relaxor phases of the disordered complex perovskite crystal-Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)O3(PZN). The appearance of a diffuse intensity peak indicates the formation of polar nanoregions at temperature T*, approximately 40K above Tc=413K. The analysis of this diffuse scattering indicates that these regions are in the shape of ellipsoids, more extended in the <111> direction than in the <001> direction. The quantitative analysis provides an estimate of the correlation length, ξ, or size of the regions and shows that ξ<111>~1.2ξ< 001>, consistent with the primary or dominant displacement of Pb leading to the low temperature rhombohedral phase. Both the appearance of the polar regions at T*and the structural transition at Tc are marked by kinks in the ξ< 111> curve but not in the ξ< 001> one, also indicating that the primary changes take place in a <111> direction at both temperatures.

REVTeX file. 4 pages, 3 figures embedded, New version after referee cond-mat/0106051

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