Crystal structure and electrical properties of textured Ba2Bi4Ti5O18 ceramics

Highly textured Ba2Bi4Ti5O18 ceramic was prepared by spark plasma sintering (SPS). X-ray diffraction of the ceramics revealed the coexistence of a major ferroelectric phase (Space group, SG: B2cb) and a minor paraelectric phase (SG: I4/mmm) at room temperature. A diffused phase transition was observed at around 240 °C. The evolution of the switching current peaks in the electric current vs. electric field (I-E) loops with increasing temperature was interpreted by the structural changes and temperature dependent polarisation reversal processes. The slim polarisation vs. electric field (P-E) loops, the extra switching current peaks in the I-E loops and the non-zero piezoelectric d33 coefficient indicate that Ba2Bi4Ti5O18 is a relaxor ferroelectric material. The recoverable energy density (0.41 ± 0.01 J/cm3) of Ba2Bi4Ti5O18 ceramics in the perpendicular direction to the SPS pressing direction is close to that of Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-based ceramics. The obtained results suggest Ba2Bi4Ti5O18 ceramics might be promising for energy storage applications

Crystal Chemistry and Magnetic Properties of Gd-Substituted Aurivillius-Type Bi₅FeTi₃O₁₅ Ceramics

Aurivillius-phase ferroelectrics can be turned into multiferroic materials by incorporating magnetic ions. The four-layer Aurivillius-type system Bi₅FeTi₃O₁₅ is well-known to show a strong magnetoelectric effect; however, much controversy exists on its magnetic state and the possible multiferroicity at room temperature. In this paper, we report a detailed investigation on the interconnections between crystal chemistry and magnetic properties of Bi₅FeTi₃O₁₅ ceramics chemically modified by the A-site gadolinium substitution. The structural studies showed that all Bi_5–<i>x</i>Gd_<i>x</i>FeTi₃O₁₅ (0 ≤ <i>x</i> ≤ 1) samples adopt the polar orthorhombic space group symmetry <i>A</i>2₁<i>am</i> at room temperature. The unit cell volume and the orthorhombic distortion decrease alongside the reduction of octahedral tilts by increasing the amount of Gd added. The decrease in tilting distortion of the [Ti/Fe]­O₆ octahedra was further evidenced by the suppression of the Raman A₁[111] tilt mode at 233 cm^–1. By using superconducting quantum interference and vibrating sample magnetometry, it was demonstrated that all the ceramics are paramagnetic from 5 K up to 700 K. It was thus concluded that the A-site substitution of Bi₅FeTi₃O₁₅ with magnetic Gd ions brings about a slight structural relaxation of the parental orthorhombic lattice, but it is not an effective way to induce multiferroic properties in the Aurivillius compound. We suggest that the room-temperature (ferri/ferro/antiferro-) magnetism in Bi₅FeTi₃O₁₅ previously reported in the literature might be due to the presence of magnetic impurities or local short-range magnetic ordering formed during material processing under different conditions

Achieving Ultrahigh Energy Storage Density of La and Ta Codoped AgNbO₃ Ceramics by Optimizing the Field-Induced Phase Transitions

Energy storage capacitors are extensively used in pulsed power devices because of fast charge/discharge rates and high power density. However, the low energy storage density and efficiency of dielectric capacitors limit their further commercialization in modern energy storage applications. Lead-free AgNbO3-based antiferroelectric (AFE) ceramics are considered to be one of the most promising environmentally friendly materials for dielectric capacitors because of their characteristic double polarization–electric field hysteresis loops with small remanent polarization and large maximum polarization. An enhancement of these characteristics allows achieving a synergistic improvement of both the energy storage density and efficiency of the antiferroelectric materials. This work reports on a feasible codoping strategy enabling the preparation of AgNbO3-based ceramics with high energy storage performance. An introduction of La3+ and Ta5+ ions into the AgNbO3 perovskite lattice was found to increase the structural stability of the antiferroelectric phase at the expense of a reduction of local polar regions, resulting in the shifting of the electric field-induced antiferroelectric–ferroelectric phase transition toward higher fields. An ultrahigh recoverable energy storage density of 6.73 J/cm3 and high energy storage efficiency of 74.1% are obtained for the Ag0.94La0.02Nb0.8Ta0.2O3 ceramic subjected to a unipolar electric field of 540 kV/cm. These values represent the best energy performance in reported lead-free ceramics so far. Hence, the La3+/Ta5+ codoping has been shown to be a good route to improve the energy storage properties of AgNbO3 ceramics

Crystal structure and electrical properties of textured Ba2Bi4Ti5O18 ceramics

Highly textured Ba2Bi4Ti5O18 ceramic was prepared by spark plasma sintering (SPS). X-ray diffraction of the ceramics revealed the coexistence of a major ferroelectric phase (Space group, SG: B2cb) and a minor paraelectric phase (SG: I4/mmm) at room temperature. A diffused phase transition was observed at around 240 °C. The evolution of the switching current peaks in the electric current vs. electric field (I-E) loops with increasing temperature was interpreted by the structural changes and temperature dependent polarisation reversal processes. The slim polarisation vs. electric field (P-E) loops, the extra switching current peaks in the I-E loops and the non-zero piezoelectric d33 coefficient indicate that Ba2Bi4Ti5O18 is a relaxor ferroelectric material. The recoverable energy density (0.41 ± 0.01 J/cm3) of Ba2Bi4Ti5O18 ceramics in the perpendicular direction to the SPS pressing direction is close to that of Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-based ceramics. The obtained results suggest Ba2Bi4Ti5O18 ceramics might be promising for energy storage applications

Grain Size Effects in Mn-Modified 0.67BiFeO₃–0.33BaTiO₃ Ceramics

Grain size can have significant effects on the properties of electroceramics for dielectric, piezoelectric, and ferroelectric applications. Here, we systematically investigate the effect of grain size on the structure and properties of Mn-modified 0.67BiFeO3–0.33BaTiO3 ceramics, an important lead-free piezoelectric ceramic that exhibits both a high piezoelectric coefficient and a high Curie point. Ceramics with average grain sizes ranging from 0.46 to 6.85 μm were prepared using conventional and spark plasma sintering. It was found that the morphotropic phase boundary compositions are composed of two polar structures, rhombohedral and tetragonal, with DC poling inducing an increase in the fraction of the rhombohedral phase. All ceramics show relaxor behavior and their freezing temperature moves to higher temperatures with increasing grain size, although their Burns temperature is independent of grain size. In fine-grained ceramics, which show pronounced relaxor behavior, significant grain size dependency is seen in dielectric, piezoelectric, and ferroelectric properties, which is attributed to the presence of single ferroelectric domains and high concentrations of polar nanoregions. In coarse-grained ceramics, a critical grain size of 2.83 μm yields the highest dielectric permittivity at room temperature, with the piezoelectric coefficient plateauing at this grain size, which can be attributed to the contribution of both polar nanoregions and high domain wall density

Terahertz Faraday Rotation of SrFe₁₂O₁₉ Hexaferrites Enhanced by Nb Doping

The magneto-optical and dielectric behavior of M-type hexaferrites as permanent magnets in the THz band is essential for potential applications like microwave absorbers and antennas, while are rarely reported in recent years. In this work, single-phase SrFe12–xNbxO19 hexaferrite ceramics were prepared by the conventional solid-state sintering method. Temperature dependence of dielectric parameters was investigated here to determine the relationship between dielectric response and magnetic phase transition. The saturated magnetization increases by nearly 12%, while the coercive field decreases by 30% in the x = 0.03 composition compared to that of the x = 0.00 sample. Besides, the Nb substitution improves the magneto-optical behavior in the THz band by comparing the Faraday rotation parameter from 0.75 (x = 0.00) to 1.30 (x = 0.03). The changes in the magnetic properties are explained by a composition-driven increase of the net magnetic moment and enhanced ferromagnetic exchange coupling. The substitution of the donor dopant Nb on the Fe site is a feasible way to obtain multifunctional M-type hexaferrites as preferred candidates for permanent magnets, sensors, and other electronic devices