Synchrotron X-ray Characterization of Atomic and Nanoscale Structures in Aperiodic Materials from Ambient to Extreme Conditions — Synergic Collaboration with Large-scale Computer Simulations

Abstract

With the advent of the third generation of synchrotron sources and the development of light source techniques, the high energy (E > 50 keV) X-ray scattering technique has become feasible, leading to new approaches for studying the structure of aperiodic materials in a quantitative manner. The pair distribution function (PDF) derived from normalized X-ray scattering data in a wide Q-range can reveal the structure of aperiodic materials not only at the atomic scale, but also at the nanoscale. Therefore, the PDF method has become popular, especially when combined with computer simulations, and it has been applied to functional disordered materials and nano-/mesoporous materials from ambient to extreme conditions (high temperature and/or pressure). In this chapter, the high-energy X-ray scattering technique and the recent developments of containerless processing techniques for extremely high temperature are introduced. Furthermore, scientific cases reported in the last 15 years, particularly in combination with large-scale computer simulations are reviewed. We focus on aperiodic materials, i.e. materials that lack long-range structural order, many of which have potential energy applications.