Single-crystal growth of Mg- and Ni-doped chain compound SrCuO2 by the traveling-solvent floating-zone method and chain breaking effect induced by the dopants

Pure and doped high-quality single-crystals of the non-congruently melting chain compound SrCuO2 were grown in an infra-red image furnace using the traveling solvent floating zone technique. The growth conditions, together with the characterization of the grown single crystals by optical microscopy, EDX, X-ray powder diffraction and magnetization in the 2-300 K temperature range are presented. Doping by Mg2+ (S=0) and Ni2+ (S=1) on the Cu2+ (S=½) sites leads to breaking of the chains of the structure in finite segments.