Ultrastable phonon frequencies in α -quartz-type BPO4 at high temperature

Abstract

The Raman modes of α-quartz-type boron phosphate were found to be extremely stable in frequency over a large temperature range from 300–1000 K. In order to determine the origin of this behavior, the material was also studied at high pressure up to 6 GPa. Upon compression, a classical behavior was observed with mode Grüneisen parameters ranging from −0.08(2) to 3.0(1). The present results indicate that the high temperature behavior in this material is an example of an unusual compensation effect between phonon–phonon interactions and implicit contributions due to thermal expansion. Phonon stability is of utmost importance for materials properties that are dependent on it such as dielectric and piezoelectric properties, for example. Boron phosphate belongs to the important class of α-quartz-type piezoelectric materials for which temperature stability is of primordial importance for resonator and sensor applications.