Melt synthesis and characterization of complexed oxide perovskites containing rare earths

In order to synthesize various perovskite ABO₃ type compounds and their solid solutions, we have applied a novel "melt synthesis technique" rather than conventional solid-state reaction techniques. In the melt synthesis, the mixture of oxides or their precursors is melted in a short period of time (1-60 s) by a strong light radiation in an arc-imaging furnace. A spherical molten sample where multiple cations were mixed homogeneously was directly solidified on a copper hearth with a rapid cooling of 10² K/s. LaAlO₃, GdScO₃, ATiO₃ (A = Ba, Sr and Ca) and the solid solutions among them were synthesized in this technique.