Abstract
Ceramics based on pyroxenes and pyroxenoids present new pathways towards diverse functional materials. In this study, a novel sodium gadolinium pyroxene of the composition NaGdSi2O6 was successfully synthesised via a chelation-polymerization based sol-gel method and its crystal structure was determined by Rietveld refined synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction. NaGdSi2O6 crystallises in monoclinic symmetry with space group P21/c and unit cell parameters of a = 5.44069(8) Å, b = 13.83410(17) Å, c = 7.66897(9) Å and β = 109.9929(6)° (Z = 4). The structure has been identified to be an inosilicate with a strongly undulated single tetrahedral chain along c with a chain periodicity of 4 (Vierer chain). Vierer chain-type NaGdSi2O6 shows a weak antiferromagnetic coupling, however there is no evidence for long-range magnetic order above 2 K.
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