In situ pair distribution function study on lanthanum doped ceria

Doped ceria materials are widely studied for their application in solid oxide fuel cell devices. In this work we report on the average and local structure evolution of La-doped ceria (Ce1-xLaxO2-x/2, x = 0.25) under fuel cells' operating conditions. The effect of doping on the average structure is investigated using conventional Rietveld analysis of neutron powder diffraction data. The extent of disorder as well as the local structure evolution at high temperature are investigated by employing very hard X-rays under both air and reducing atmosphere.