Stabilisation of delta-Bi2O3 oxide in a Bi2O3 glass-ceramic.

Crystalline bismuth oxides are seen as potential candidates for electrolytes in devices such as intermediate temperature solid oxide fuel cells due to their high oxide ion conductivities, while glasses based on bismuth oxide are being investigated as possible alternatives to lead containing glasses for electronics. A structural study is proposed of both glass and crystalline phases in a novel glass ceramic system, which remarkably exhibits a delta-Bi2O3 type structure at room temperature when crystallised, a structure noted for its high ionic conductivity. Using Rietveld analysis to establish the structure and stoichiometry of the crystalline phases and pair distribution function analysis involving reverse Monte Carlo modelling we propose to characterise the structure of the uncrystallised glass phase as well as those of the crystalline and residual glass phases in the glass ceramic.