Li4Mo5O17 Crystals by LTG CZ: Faceting and Temperature-Dependent Crystal Structure

Abstract

An approach to growing Li₄Mo₅O₁₇ crystals by the low-thermal-gradient Czochralski technique (LTG CZ) was optimized to obtain bulk single crystals with dimensions 70×35×35 mm. An alteration of temperature parameters during the crystal growth process was proposed. Faceting was studied on a number of Li₄Mo₅O₁₇ crystals grown under varying conditions, Miller indexes of the developed facet families were determined, and based on the obtained data, a reference model of Li₄Mo₅O₁₇ crystal was visualized. Molybdenum coordination in Li₄Mo₅O₁₇ crystal was studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. X-ray diffraction patterns of Li₄Mo₅O₁₇ were recorded in the temperature range of 323-743 K. Based on obtaining data, thermal expansion vectors were calculated and an expansion ellipsoid was visualized.