Nanostructure with diffuse streaks in ScRh3B0.6 compound studied by electron microscopy

We have investigated a characteristic nanostructure with sharp diffuse streaks in a Cu3Au/anti-perovskite-type ScRh3B0.6 compound by electron diffraction, and phase- and Z-contrast high-resolution electron microscopy. The electron diffraction patterns reveal diffuse streaks running along <111>* directions and 121212–type superlattice reflections. The maxima of the streaks can be expressed as a modulation vector q (= α·(af* + bf* + cf*), α = 0.384). The observed HRTEM image taken along the [011] direction with the diffuse streaks indicates a planar domain structure on {111} planes. The superlattice is due to boron/vacancy orderings with planar nanodomains. The diffuse streaks in reciprocal space correspond to well-ordered domains with disturbed periodicity along the <111> directions.