In situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction of ferroelastic La0.8Ca0.2CoO3 ceramics during uniaxial compression

Uniaxial compression of rhombohedral La0.8Ca0.2CoO3 ceramics has been studied in situ using synchrotron X-ray diffraction. The intensities of Bragg reflections parallel and perpendicular to the stress field were simultaneously detected as a function of the stress. Reorientation of ferroelastic domains due to the uniaxial stress was demonstrated. With increasing stress the volume fraction of domains with the hexagonal c-axis parallel to the stress axis increased at the expense of domains with the c-axis perpendicular to the stress axis. The strain in the polycrystalline materials evolved unevenly with increasing stress due to crystallographic anisotropy. In energetically favourable domains with the c-axis parallel to the stress axis, the rhombohedral distortion from cubic symmetry increased, while the crystal structure became closer to cubic in domains with the c-axis perpendicular to the stress. Successive compression/decompression cycles to higher maximum stress resulted in a higher volume fraction of reoriented domains both at maximum stress and after decompression.