Publication Date:
2017-02-17
Description:
Ferroelectric nanocrystals show promise for application in forming hybridized nonlinear materials with liquid crystals. It is well known that bulk single crystals of lithium niobate (LiNbO 3 ) are most easily grown in a congruent (lithium-deficient) form but can also be grown in a stoichiometric form. This is controlled by the specific growth conditions and the stoichiometric ratio ρ = M Li /(M Li + M Nb ), where M is the molar fraction. This work explores the dependence of the stoichiometry of LiNbO 3 nanocrystals on the value of ρ in the synthesis step. Batches of LiNbO 3 nanocrystals were synthesized using a sol-gel method. The nanocrystals were analysed via SEM and Raman spectroscopy to gain information about their morphology, stoichiometry, defect content, and phase. For bulk crystals, previous work has demonstrated that the spectral widths of specific Raman modes strongly depend on ρ. For the nanocrystals, the Raman ...
Print ISSN:
1757-8981
Electronic ISSN:
1757-899X
Topics:
Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Production Engineering, Mining and Metallurgy, Traffic Engineering, Precision Mechanics
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