New form of scandium fluoride

Like its stoichiometric predecessors, tetragonal ScF2.76 showed the tendency to undergo structural evolution under pressure. A new polymorph modification of scandium fluoride deficient in fluorine has been prepared after treatment at 40 kbar. The compound belongs in a cubic system, lattice parameter a=6.503 Å. The structural relationships with other forms of scandium fluoride and possible applications are discussed.