CRYSTAL-STRUCTURE AND INELASTIC NEUTRON-SCATTERING IN THE INFINITE-LAYER COMPOUNDS SR1-XNDXCUO2

The infinite-layer compounds have rather simple crystal structure and thereby offer an ideal system towards an improved understanding of the phenomenon of high-T-c superconductivity. New method for synthesis of IL compounds has been developed. The sets of the samples with rare-ea rth content of 0.05<x<0.18 were produced. Their crystal structure and oxygen distribution in sublatticies were studied by means of X-ray and neutron powder diffraction. Inelastic neutron scattering has been emp loyed to search for crystalline-electric-field transitions in these co mpounds. Based on the present results as well as taken from the curren t literature, the ratio a/c of the crystal lattice constants is sugges ted to be an empirical parameter for the existence of superconductivit y in the electron-doped infinite-layer system Sr1-xNdxCuO2.