Growth of YbFe2O4 single crystals exhibiting long-range charge order via the optical floating zone method

Publication date: 1 October 2017
Source:Journal of Crystal Growth, Volume 475
Author(s): H.L. Williamson, T. Mueller, M. Angst, G. Balakrishnan
We report the growth of YbFe2O4 single crystals via the floating zone technique, in four different oxygen partial pressures ranging from CO:CO2 =1:5 to 1:2.5, for a cross comparison of stoichiometry effects. We obtained highly stoichiometric single crystals with sharp magnetic transitions as well as off-stoichiometric samples with smeared transitions. We also provide for the first time clear evidence of 3D long-range charge order correlations at room temperature in YbFe2O4 through high energy X-ray diffraction, identical to the analogous LuFe2O4. The correlation length obtained for YbFe2O4 in the $\overrightarrow{c}$ direction is at least a factor of 5 larger than that observed in LuFe2O4.