A study of crystallization in amorphous Bi-2(MoO4)(3)

We studied the crystallization process in amorphous Bi-2(MoO4)(3) which was prepared using a twin roller quenching apparatus. The sample was heat-trea ted at the various temperatures, 300, 345, 355, 375, and 450 degrees C, for 1 minute. We found from X-ray diffraction (XRD) experiment that the sample started to crystallize at the temperature 355 OC and ended the crystalliza tion at the temperature 450 degrees C. The activation energies for the crys tallization and the glass transition were estimated as 3.3 eV and 6.7 eV, r espectively from the measurements of the heating rate dependent crystalliza tion temperature and glass transition temperature by using a differential t hermal analysis technique. We also found from XRD and DTA experiments that the crystallization process in Bi-2(MoO4)3 was polymorphous and from the Ra man spectroscopy experiment that during the crystallization each grain boun dary was not clamped by differently oriented neighbouring grains.