Thermal, Optical, and Dielectric Properties of Fluoride Rb2TaF7

Abstract

The thermal, optical, and dielectric properties of fluoride Rb2TaF7 were investigated. It was observed that the variation in chemical pressure in fluorides TaF7 caused by the cation substitution of rubidium for ammonium does not affect the ferroelastic nature of structural distortions, but leads to stabilization of the high- and low-temperature phases and enhancement of birefringence. The entropy of the phase transition P4/nmm ↔ Cmma is typical of the shift transformations, which is consistent with a model of the initial and distorted phase structures. The anisotropy of chemical pressure causes the change of signs of the anomalous strain and baric coefficient dT/dp of Rb2TaF7 as compared with the values for its ammonium analog.