Anisotropic thermal expansion of strontium barium niobate

Abstract

Strontium barium niobate is a tungsten-bronze ferroelectric crystal having a tetragonal unit cell. Low-temperature x-ray diffraction studies were performed on a single crystal of Sr0.75Ba0.25Nb2O6 to determine the thermal expansivity along the a- and c-axes. Negative thermal expansion was observed along the c direction while a positive thermal expansion was measured along the a axis. The anisotropic thermal expansion behavior is explained as arising due to the geometry of the crystal structure.