Phase transitions and macroscopic properties of NaNO3 embedded into porous glasses

Abstract The crystal structure and dielectric response of nanocomposite materials on base of porous glasses with average pore diameters of 320, 46 and 7 nm with embedding sodium nitrate have been studied by neutron diffraction and dielectric spectroscopy in low and high temperature phases up to melting. In porous glasses with 46 and 7 nm pores NaNO 3 forms dendrite nanoclusters with "diffraction" sizes of 50(2.5) and 20(2) nm. Decreasing of particle sizes results in decreasing of T c (temperature of order–disorder orientational transition) and T melt and in smearing of structure phase transition. The values of critical exponent β for orientational transition are estimated from temperature dependences of intensities of superstructure elastic peaks for these three types of nanocomposite materials.