Structural changes accompanying thermal transformation in a chrysotile asbestos sample of Indian origin upto a temperature of 900°C have been investigated by x-ray method. The changes in lattice parameters have been systematically measured by applying a least square refinement technique and the crystallite size and strain defects at different stages have been estimated by line profile analysis of the diffraction peaks. The present study also confirms the earlier results on stepwise transformation of chrysotile fibres. This sequence of transformation has been explained assuming two different types of crystallites as reported in kaolinite.

Radial distribution analysis of x-ray intensities diffracted by chrysotile samples untreated and treated at different temperatures upto 900°C has been carried out. Interatomic distances, coordination numbers, mean square displacements and the interatomic coupling constants for different pairs of atoms have been calculated from the radial distribution curves. The interatomic distances and octahedral co-ordination number is found to decrease marginally upto 640°C and thereafter decrease steadily upto 800°C. The hydroxyl water is completely expelled from the structure and the original chrysotile structure breaks down. The entire process of dehydration has been interpreted in terms of RDF data.

Thin films of synthesized Cd_0·8Zn_0·2Te have been deposited on glass substrate at different substrate temperatures. Different microstructural parameters like crystallite size, rms strain, dislocation density, stacking fault probability and stacking fault energy are determined by XRD, SEM, TEM and TED. XRD and XPS have been used to determine the composition. Variations of the microstructural parameters with film thickness and substrate temperature have been studied in order to obtain optimum growth condition for maximum particle size and least microstructural defects. An effort has been made to correlate the experimental results.

Tin selenide (SnSe) thin films prepared on mica and glass substrates by vacuum sublimation technique and examined by scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron diffraction techniques showed epitaxial and polycrystalline nature respectively irrespective of substrate temperature. Grain size of the films deposited on glass substrate increased with increase in substrate temperature.