Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 7, 2026

From Molecules to Materials: Engineering New Ionic Liquid Crystals Through Halogen Bonding
Published on: March 24, 2018
Growth and Optical Properties of LixNa1-xBa12(BO3)7F4 Fluoride Borates with "Antizeolite" Structure
Tatyana B Bekker1,2, Sergey V Rashchenko1, Vladimir P Solntsev
1Novosibirsk State University , 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia.
Abstract:
Studied LixNa1-xBa12(BO3)7F4 (P42bc) solid solution belongs to the new class of "antizeolite" borates with [Ba12(BO3)6]6+ cation pattern, which contains channels filled by anionic clusters. Optical-quality crystals were grown from the compositions with different sodium-lithium ratio. The results of Rietveld refinement based on powder data demonstrate linear increase of parameter a and unit cell volume with Na/(Na + Li) ratio in cation site. Parameter c is less sensitive to the changes in stoichiometry, which is consistent with channel topology of LixNa1-xBa12(BO3)7F4 structure. Distinctive feature of LixNa1-xBa12(BO3)7F4 crystals is their deep purple color, which is due to both hole-type and electron-type centers. Crystals are characterized by linear dichroism effect.
Related Concept Videos
The Born-Haber Cycle
Trends in Lattice Energy: Ion Size and Charge
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...
Lattice Energies of Ionic Crystals
Imperfections in Crystal Structure: Stoichiometric Point Defects
Imperfections in Crystal Structure: Non-Stoichiometric Defects

