Thermally activated rotational disorder in CaMoO4 nanocrystals

Abstract

A dual-space approach, combining Rietveld and pair distribution function (PDF) analyses, has been applied to temperature-dependent synchrotron X-ray total scattering data collected on vapor diffusion sol–gel derived CaMoO₄ nanocrystals. A sharp transition in Ca–O bond distances in the range of 151–163 K was identified by PDF analysis, which is attributed to the thermal activation of rotational disorder associated with the rigid MoO₄ tetrahedra.