title: Low-temperature vacuum reduction of BiMnO3.
abstract: Low-temperature vacuum reduction was used for the preparation of the oxygen-deficient BiMnO(2.81) sample in a bulk form from stoichiometric BiMnO(3). The transformation occurs in vacuum better than 10(-3) Pa at a narrow temperature range of 570-600 K. The structure of the new phase was analyzed using synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction data. BiMnO(2.81) crystallizes in a perovskite-type cubic structure (space group I-43d) with a = 15.88552(5) Å corresponding to a 4a(p) superstructure, where a(p) is the parameter of the cubic perovskite subcell. Oxygen vacancies are ordered, and one oxygen site in BiMnO(2.81) is completely vacant, resulting in MnO(5) pyramids. BiMnO(2.81) is rather unstable in air and slowly restores its oxygen content even at room temperature.
authors: International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (MANA), National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), 1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044, Japan. Alexei.Belik@nims.go.jp
authors: Alexei A
authors: AA
authors: Belik
authors: Yoshitaka
authors: Y
authors: Matsushita
authors: Masahiko
authors: M
authors: Tanaka
authors: Eiji
authors: E
authors: Takayama-Muromachi