Phase transitions in LiKSO4: Low-temperature neutron diffraction results

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Abstract
Results of a detailed crystallographic study of the structural phase transitions in LiKSO4, carried out using single crystal neutron diffraction at ambient and below-ambient temperatures (300–100 K), are presented. The study indicates two clear phase transitions at 205 K (from space group P63 to space group P31c), at 189 K (to space group Cc) and a third transition at about 130 K in the cooling cycle. The corresponding temperatures are 250 K, 200 K and 138 K in the heating cycle. The existence of twins, mixed phases, and extremely sluggish kinetics for the various phase transitions, as well as the structural details of the various phases in this mixed salt, can explain the apparent inconsistencies in the results of several experimental investigations reported in the literature.