Potassium magnesium sulphate hexahydrate (picromerite) was synthesized and single crystals were obtained from saturated aqueous solution by slow evaporation method at room temperature. The crystals were bright, colourless and transparent having well defined external faces. The grown crystals were characterized through Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectral studies and thermal analysis. The FTIR data were used to assign the characteristic vibrational frequencies of the various chemical bonds in the compound. The compound crystallizes in monoclinic lattice with the space group P2 1 /c. The thermogravimetry (TG) indicates the removal of only two water molecules around 100°C. A suitable decomposition pattern was formulated based on the percentage weight losses observed in TG of the compound. The results of differential thermal analysis (DTA) conform to the results of TGA. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis carried out at high temperature suggests that the occurrence of two phase transitions in the crystal between 140 and 180°C. When the crystal was cooled below the room temperature up to -170°C, no thermal anomaly was observed.

Crores (one of the PIs) 3. Synthesis and Characterization of Iron Chalcogenide, FeS2 (Pyrite) and Fe2SiS4 Thin-Films for Photovoltaic Applications, Department of Science and Technology, 49.34 Lakhs, 2014-17 (Co-PI) 4. Investigations into compositionally modulated magnetoelectric gallium ferrite for sensor and transducer applications,

In this study, we report on the synthesis of nanopowders of ferroelectric Bi3.5Nd0.5Ti3O12 ceramic at temperatures below 500°C via a simple chemical method using citric acid as a solvent. The calcined powders were characterized using X‐ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Heating the as‐dried powders in air first leads to crystallization of the Bi2Ti2O7 phase at ∼310°C, followed by crystallization of the perovskite Nd‐doped Bi4Ti3O12 phase at ∼490°C as suggested by the peaks in the DSC analysis and confirmed by the evolution of phases in XRD patterns of the powders calcined at various temperatures. TEM of particles calcined at 550°C for 1 h in air showed an average particle size of 50–60 nm. The temperature dependence of capacitance of nanopowders calcined at 700°C for 1 h in air showed a Curie temperature of ∼615°C evincing a ferroelectric transition.