Crystallization kinetics of inorganic hydrates

This project gives you a great opportunity to acquire knowledge of the various techniques needed to probe solid-state phase transitions in crystalline and glassy materials, as well as techniques for cryogenic sample preparation and various cryogenic sample environment.

 

As a part of the project, you will perform synthesis and synchrotron powder diffraction measurements at the Diamond synchrotron and Raman spectroscopy measurements at the ISIS neutron source to examine the unknown crystalline intermediate phases during the fast phase transformations from the metastable MgSO4·9H2O and NiSO4·9H2O to the thermodynamically-stable phases, respectively, MgSO4·11H2O and NiSO4·7H2O (via metastable 8H2O).

Other metastable divalent transition-metal analogues will also be studied.

 

Data analysis will require the application of the basic and advanced powder diffraction data techniques for structure refinement, including sequential and parametric Rietveld refinements and development of a model for the crystal growth.