Single crystal growth of BiMnO₃ under high pressure–high temperature

Abstract

In the literature, the properties of the multiferroic BiMnO₃ oxide have been studied in polycrystalline and thin film materials. Here, we report the first study performed on a single crystal of BiMnO₃. The single crystals were grown at high pressure–high temperature (HP–HT) in a belt system using a flux method based on H₃BO₃. For the first time, we have measured the Raman spectrum of BiMnO₃ and solved its crystallographic structure based on the data collected by X-ray diffraction (XRD) on a single crystal. In addition, we have studied in situ the HP–HT synthesis of polycrystalline BiMnO₃ by XRD. Starting from a mixture of Bi₂O₃ and Mn₂O₃, an intermediate phase has been found before the formation of the distorted perovskite BiMnO₃.

Keywords:

• high-pressure–high-temperature synthesis
• multiferroic materials
• magnetic and electronic properties