Synthesis and crystal structure of the high-pressure iron borate α-FeB2O4

The high-pressure iron borate α-FeB2O4 was synthesized under high-pressure and high-temperature conditions in a Walker-type multianvil apparatus at 7.5 GPa and 1100 °C. The monoclinic iron borate crystallizes with eight formula units in the space group P21/c with the lattice parameters a=715.2(2), b=744.5(2), c=862.3(2) pm, and β=94.71(3)°. The compound is built up exclusively from corner-sharing BO4-tetrahedra, isotypic to the monoclinic phases β-SrGa2O4, CaAl2O4-II, and CaGa2O4. Additionally, the structure is closely related to the orthorhombic compound BaFe2O4. The structure consists of layers of six-membered rings, which are interconnected to a three-dimensional network. The iron cations are coordinated by six and seven oxygen atoms. Next to synthesis and crystal structure of the new high-pressure borate, structural coherences to other structure types are discussed.