Structure and dynamics of levitated liquid aluminates

Abstract We used the aerodynamic levitation technique combined with CO 2 laser heating to study the structures of liquid CaAl 2 O 4 and MgAl 2 O 4 above their melting point with X-ray and neutron diffraction. We determined the structure factors and corresponding pair correlation functions describing the short-range order in the liquids. The combination of the two scattering techniques makes it possible to derive information not accessible with a single measurement. We also obtained information on the dynamics of liquid MgAl 2 O 4 with inelastic X-ray scattering. In particular, we determined the sound velocity and the longitudinal viscosity.