Reinvestigation of Dion-Jacobson Phases CsCa2Nb2MO9 (M = Fe and Al)

Dion-Jacobson phases $CsCa_2Nb_2FeO_9$ and $CsCa_2Nb_2AlO_9$ were reinvestigated by the Rietveld analysis of powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) method, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). These nominal compounds, previously known as the oxygen-deficient layered perovskites with the sequences of $NbO_6-MO_4-NbO_6$ in tripled slab, in fact, were mixed phases of n = 3 Dion-Jacobson phases and impurities such as $Ca_2NbFeO_6$ and $Ca_3Al_2O_6$. The difference of morphology and chemical in-homogeneity between Dion-Jacobson phases and impurities could be clearly identified by scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The chemical composition of $CsCa_2Nb_2FeO_9$ was calculated into $Cs_{0.59}Ca_{2.64}Nb_{2.92}Fe_{0.81}$ in small agglomerate crystals and $Cs_{0.95}Ca_{1.97}Nb_{3.08}Fe_{0.15}$ in long plate-like crystals.