What is it about?
The structure of the network forming glass GeO2 is investigated by making the first application of the method of in situ neutron diffraction with isotope substitution at pressures increasing from ambient to 8 GPa. As the density increases with pressure, the network structure collapses as tetrahedral Ge-centred motifs are replaced by square pyramidal and octahedral Ge-centred motifs. This replacement necessitates the formation of threefold coordinated oxygen atoms and leads to an increase with density in the number of small rings.
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Why is it important?
We showed that neutron diffraction with isotope substitution can be used to help disentangle the structural complexity of disordered materials in situ under high-pressure conditions, thus providing detailed experimental information to test the efficacy of different structural models.
Perspectives
It was a challenge to develop the technique and rewarding to obtain high quality results that could be used as the arbitrator of competing models for the mechanisms of structural collapse in a prototypical network-forming glass under pressure.
Professor Philip S Salmon
University of Bath
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Mechanisms of network collapse in GeO 2 glass: high-pressure neutron diffraction with isotope substitution as arbitrator of competing models , Journal of Physics Condensed Matter, November 2012, Institute of Physics Publishing,
DOI: 10.1088/0953-8984/24/50/502101.
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