The modulated structure of Ba0.39Sr0.61Nb2O6. I. Harmonic solution

The structure of a crystal of Sr0.61Ba0.39Nb2O6 has been solved and refined as an incommensurate structure in five-dimensional superspace. The structure is tetragonal, superspace group P4bm(pp1/2; p-p1/2), unit-cell parameters a = 12.4566 (9), c = 7.8698 (6) Angstrom, modulation vectors q(1) = 0.3075 (6) (a* +b*), q(2) = 0.3075 (6) (a* - b*). The data collection was performed on a KUMA-CCD diffractometer and allowed the integration of weak first-order satellite reflections. The structure was refined from 2569 reflections to a final value of R = 0.0479. The modulation affects mainly the positions of the O atoms, which are displaced by as much as 0.5 Angstrom, and the site 4c that is occupied by Sr and Ba atoms. Only a simplified model, in which this atomic position is occupied by an effective atom Sr/Ba, could be refined from the data set. The modulation of displacement parameters has been used to account for the modulated distribution of Sr and Ba. The whole refinement uses only first-order modulation waves, but there are strong indications that for a complete solution the use of higher-order satellites and a more complicated model is necessary.