Structural aspects of Charge Density Waves in the Blue Bronzes

Recent x-ray and neutron studies of the structural aspects of the charge density wave (CDW)-peierls transition of the blue bronzes are reviewed. The spatial and temporal features of the pretransitional fluctuations, as well as the phase and amplitude excitation of the of the incommensurate CDW, are described. A detailed description of the mechanism of the Peierls transition of the blue bronzes is also givan, and the relavent microscopic parameters are deduced from the experimental data.