Crystallography Based on Synchrotron Radiation: Experiments of Russian Users of the ESRF BM01 Diffraction Beam Line

Abstract

The review deals with studies carried out at the BM01 diffraction beam line of the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility. X-ray diffraction analysis of single-crystal proton conductors demonstrates the possibilities of a precise diffraction experiment in which phase transitions associated with the release of crystallization water and transformation of the network of hydrogen contacts are investigated. Scanning of reciprocal space with the help of a 2D detector enables us to determine the new phase symmetry in a thin-film multiferroic sample based on bismuth ferrite (the given phase is stable only under thin-film conditions). A combination of Bragg and diffusion scattering processes is employed to investigate the interdependence between the structure and dynamics of a crystal lattice and the physical properties of a relaxor material with a perovskite-like structure. The complementarity and synergy of neutron and synchrotron experiments are demonstrated using the combined study of materials from the manganese-silicide group, which has revealed a nontrivial relationship between magnetic and crystallographic chiralities in noncollinear magnets. Although the given review is limited to only a few experiments carried out by Russian scientists at the BM01 beam line, they still illustrate a variety of problems that can be solved using a modern diffraction station where the bending magnet of a third-generation synchrotron is employed as the synchrotron radiation source.