Emerging electronic oxides (e.g. dielectrics, ferroelectrics, ionic conductors) frequently exhibit local atomic arrangements that are significantly different from those described by the average atomic positions as inferred from traditional crystallographic methods. The research includes experimental measurements on industrially-pertinent materials using a range of advanced techniques (transmission electron microscopy, x-ray and neutron diffraction, x-ray absorption fine structure, and Raman spectroscopy) and development of data analysis approaches and computer software for simultaneous structural refinements using multiple types of data

Accurate knowledge of atomic arrangements and internal substructure in nanomaterials is a key to understanding their properties. The project seeks to address this measurement problem by integrating theoretical analyses and several critical experimental techniques including total x ray and neutron scattering for extracting atomic pair distribution functions, small-angle scattering, and extended absorption fine structure measurements. NIST's Materials Measurement Science Division has access to state-of-the-art synchrotron and neutron radiation facilities for these measurements.