Growth and thermal properties of Ga3PO7 bulk single crystals

Ga3PO7 crystal with large size and good optical quality has been grown by the top-seeded solution growth slow-cooling method from a Li2O–3MoO3 flux system. Thermal properties of the as-grown Ga3PO7 crystal have been carefully studied by measuring the anisotropic thermal expansion, specific heat, thermal diffusion, and thermal conductivity. The results show that Ga3PO7 crystal possesses low thermal expansion coefficients and good thermal conductivity. The calculated average thermal expansion coefficients along a and c axes are αa=1.66×10−6 and αc=3.53×10−6K−1 from 293.15to773.15K. The thermal conductivities along a and c axes are up to 6.34 and 6.18Wm−1K−1 at the temperature of 303.15K.