TheinhomogeneityinacongrunetLiTaO3crystalhasbeenobservedbytransmissionsynchrotrontopography.ManyextraordinaryregionsexistincongruentLiTaO3crystalandtheyoftenshowdiffractionintensitydifferentfromthatofordinaryregionsinsynchrotrontopographs.DifferentialthermalanalysisindiatesthattheCurietemperatureoftheextraordinaryregionislowerthanthatofordinaryregion,andtheextraordinaryregionisreallyahighdefectdensityregion.Thediffractioncontrastoftheextraordinaryregioninsynchrotrontopographsisexplainedqualitativelybyacalculationattheselectedwavelength.2001PublishedbyElsevierScienceB.V.