X-ray and neutron scattering

Abstract:

The aim of the present paper is to review and briefly discuss recent experimental results on the effect of high pressure (p > 1.5 GPa) on relaxor ferroelectrics, exemplified by Na1/2Bi1/2TiO3 and PbMg1/3Nb2/3O3. The main result is that relaxor ferroelectrics present important polar and structural pressure-instabilities, which lead to both phase transitions of the average structure and considerable changes of the local structure. It is in particular the observation of a pressure-induced suppression of the relaxor characteristic X-ray diffuse scattering that points to important changes in the local order. The complementary use of Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and X-ray diffuse scattering allows the proposition of a mechanism for the observed changes.

Abstract:

We report magnetization and neutron scattering measurements of the half-doped compound La1.5Sr0.5CoO4, which exhibits a checkerboard pattern of charge ordering below not, vert, similar800 K. In the antiferromagnetically-ordered phase below not, vert, similar40 K the spins are found to be canted in the ab plane. The spin excitation spectrum includes spin-wave excitations with a maximum energy of 16 meV, and diffuse magnetic modes at energies around 30 meV.