A-site order in rhombohedral perovskite-like oxides La2-xSrxCoTiO6 (0.6 <= x <= 1.0)

The evolution of the room-temperature structure of the oxide series LaSrCoTiO (0.6 ≤ x ≤ 1.0) was studied as a function of the Sr content using different diffraction techniques and applying the symmetry-adapted modes formalism (AMPLIMODES). The title compounds adopt perovskite-like structures of rhombohedral symmetry with an octahedral tilting scheme (aaa) with either space group R3¯c or R32. The latter symmetry is observed in those cases (for x ≃ 0.6) where additional rock-salt-like ordering of La and Sr is produced in the perovskite A sites. Two composition-driven phase transitions are observed in the whole series LaSrCoTiO (0.0 ≤ x ≤ 1.0). Using the concept of internal pressure, the effect of doping with Sr on the structure can be properly discussed. Both phase transitions seem to be of first order since they can be associated with discontinuities either in the entropy or in the structure. The first transition (P2/n → Pnma) occurs as the B cations become totally disordered. Along the whole compositional range the modes responsible for the out-of-phase tilting of BO6 octahedra remain active, but those associated with the in-phase octahedral tilting vanish for x ≥ 0.6, this being associated with the second transition (Pnma → R3¯c). Finally, for x = 1.0 the three pseudo-cubic cell parameters become very similar, pointing to a transition to a cubic structure which could be obtained by applying pressure or raising the temperature.We thank Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad and Comunidad de Madrid for funding the projects MAT2013-46452-C4-1-R, MAT2013-46452-C4-4-R, PIB2010JP-00181 and S2013/MIT-2753, respectively. Financial support from Universidad San Pablo is also acknowledged. We acknowledge Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas for financial support and for provision of synchrotron radiation facilities, and we would like to thank beamline staff for assistance in using the BM25-SpLine line