Czochralski growth of lead iodide single crystals: Investigations and comparison with the Bridgman method

✍ Scribed by J. Tonn; A.N. Danilewsky; A. Cröll; M. Matuchova; J. Maixner

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 2011
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 813 KB
• Volume: 318
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0022-0248
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jcrysgro.2010.10.059

✦ Synopsis

We have developed a procedure to grow lead iodide (PbI 2 , 2H type) crystals using the Czochralski method applying an Ar counter pressure inside a fused silica chamber. The resulting crystal has a length of 3 cm and is free of cracks. Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) measurements demonstrate that the crystal grew along [1 1 2 ¯0] direction (c-axis perpendicular to growth direction), which was defined by the PbI 2 seed. This means that a better control of the growth direction is possible using the Czochralski method. The EBSD patterns suggest a simplified preparation method of the very soft crystals using samples with a surface orientation perpendicular to (0 0 0 1). Rocking curves measured by high resolution X-ray diffraction (HRXRD) indicate that the structural quality of the approximately 80% single crystalline material is comparable to Bridgman-Stockbarger-grown crystals.