Comments on the characteristics of incommensurate modulation in quartz: discussion about a neutron scattering experiment

From analysis of the elastic neutron scattering data of Dolino et al. [J. Phys. (Paris) (1984), 45, 361-371], it is shown that, besides the well identified components u(x) and u(y) of the acoustic displacements in the incommensurate (IC) phase of quartz, there also exists a strong component of the u(z) vector of the modulation. The existence of the large u(z) is not consistent with the currently accepted model for the IC transition in quartz, since the long-period IC modulation observed in quartz cannot induce any noticeable acoustic component u(z). The need for a new model is keenly felt in order to understand the origin of the IC modulation in quartz.