Abstract
The crystal structure of the high-pressure phase rubidium-IV was investigated using synchrotron x-ray diffraction. Full profile refinements of angle-dispersive powder diffraction data resulted in a solution with the space group . The structure is made up of columns of face-sharing square antiprisms formed by one subset of Rb atoms (16 per unit cell). Quasi-one-dimensional channels in between these columns are occupied by a second subset of Rb atoms. These results demonstrate that a quite complex crystal structure is adopted by a heavy alkali metal during the progression of the pressure-driven electronic transition. The structure of Rb-IV exhibits a close resemblance to the metal sublattice of the -type structure.
- Received 9 July 1999
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.83.4085
©1999 American Physical Society