Single-crystal diffraction at the high-pressure Indo-Italian beamline Xpress at Elettra, Trieste

Abstract

In this study the first in situ high-pressure single-crystal X-ray diffraction experiments at Xpress, the Indo-Italian beamline of the Elettra synchrotron, Trieste (Italy), are reported. A description of the beamline experimental setup and of the procedures for single-crystal centring, data collection and processing, using diamond anvil cells, are provided. High-pressure experiments on a synthetic crystal of clinoenstatite (MgSiO3), CaCO3 polymorphs and a natural sample of leucophoenicite [Mn7Si3O12(OH)2] validated the suitability of the beamline experimental setup to: (i) locate and characterize pressure-induced phase transitions; (ii) solve ab initio the crystal structure of high-pressure polymorphs; (iii) perform fine structural analyses at the atomic scale as a function of pressure; (iv) disclose complex symmetry and structural features undetected using conventional X-ray sources.