Evaluation of stability region for scandium-containing rare-earth garnet single crystals and their congruent-melting compositions

Single crystals of scandium-containing rare-earth garnets in system R-Sc-C-O (R3+=Y, Gd; C3+=Al, Ga) have been grown by the Czochralski technique. X-ray diffraction analysis has been used to refine crystal compositions. The fundamental difference between the melt compositions and compositions of grown crystals has been found (except for compositions of congruent-melting compounds, CMC). The specific features of garnet solid solution formation have been established and the ternary diagrams with real or hypothetical phases have been built. The dinamics of coordination polyhedra changes with the formation of substitutional solid solutions have been proposed based on the mathematical modeling and experimental data. Possible existence of CMC with garnet structure in different systems as well as limit content of Sc ions in dodecahedral and octahedral sites prior to their partial substitution of ions, located in other sites, have been evaluated. It was established that the redistribution of cations over crystallographic sites (antistructural point defects) due to system self-organization to maintain its stability may be accompanied by cation ordering and the symmetry change of individual polyhedrons and/or the whole crystal. •Scandium-containing rare-earth garnets were grown by the Czochralski method.•Real crystal compositions were refined by X-ray diffraction.•Ternary diagrams with real or hypothetical phases in the vertices have been built.•Possible existence of garnet's congruent-melting compositions was determined.•Limit content of Sc3+ in dodecahedral and octahedral sites was evaluated.