FLOATING ZONE CRYSTAL GROWTH OF PURE AND Si- OR Zn-SUBSTITUTED COPPER GERMANATE CuGeO3

Crystal growth of pure and Si- or Zn-substituted copper germanate CuGeO3 was carried out by the floating zone technique associated to an image furnace and has led to high crystalline quality centimeter-sized crystals. Segregation of Zn and Si in the resulting solid solution crystals has been studied using ICP/AES chemical analysis and has allowed determination of the partition coefficients of these elements in CuGeO3. © 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd