Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 5, 2026

Solid-state Graft Copolymer Electrolytes for Lithium Battery Applications
Published on: August 12, 2013
Trilithium scandium bis-(orthoborate)
Lizhong Mao1, Tianyong Zhou, Ning Ye
1Fujian Institute of Research on the Structure of Matter, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Fuzhou, Fujian 350002, People's Republic of China.
Single crystals of lithium scandium borate, Li(3)Sc(BO(3))(2), were grown from a high-temperature melt. This framework structure features distorted octahedra, tetrahedra, and triangles, revealing its unique crystal chemistry.
Area of Science:
- Crystal chemistry
- Solid-state chemistry
- Materials science
Background:
- Understanding the crystal structure of inorganic compounds is crucial for developing new materials.
- Lithium scandium borates represent a class of compounds with potential applications in various fields.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize and characterize single crystals of Li(3)Sc(BO(3))(2).
- To elucidate the crystal structure and atomic arrangement of the title compound.
Main Methods:
- Single crystal growth via spontaneous nucleation from a high-temperature melt.
- X-ray diffraction analysis to determine the crystal structure.
Main Results:
- Single crystals of Li(3)Sc(BO(3))(2) were successfully obtained.
- The compound crystallizes in a framework structure.
- The structure comprises distorted [ScO(6)] octahedra, [LiO(4)] tetrahedra, [LiO(4)] rectangles, and isolated [BO(3)] triangles.
Conclusions:
- The crystal structure of Li(3)Sc(BO(3))(2) has been determined.
- The framework is built upon specific coordination polyhedra of Sc and Li atoms with borate triangles.
- The atomic positions, including those on inversion centers, provide insights into the compound's symmetry and bonding.
Related Concept Videos
Ionic Bonding and Electron Transfer
Valence Bond Theory
Ionic Association
Crystal Field Theory - Tetrahedral and Square Planar Complexes
Crystal field theory (CFT) is applicable to molecules in geometries other than octahedral. In octahedral complexes, the lobes of the dx2−y2 and dz2 orbitals point directly at the ligands. For tetrahedral complexes, the d orbitals remain in place, but with only four ligands located between the axes. None of the orbitals points directly at the tetrahedral ligands. However, the dx2−y2 and dz2 orbitals (along the Cartesian axes) overlap with the ligands less than the dxy,...
Ionic Crystal Structures
Most monatomic ions behave as charged spheres, and their attraction for ions of opposite charge is the same in every direction. Consequently, stable structures for ionic compounds result (1) when ions of one charge are surrounded by as many ions as possible of the opposite...
Hybridization of Atomic Orbitals I

