Volume 12 Issue 3
Impedance Spectroscopy of Lanthanum-Doped (Pb0.75Ba0.25)(Zr0.70Ti0.30)O3 Ceramics
Małgorzata Adamczyk-Habrajska,Jolanta Makowska,Tomasz Pikula,Beata Wodecka-Duś,Joanna A. Bartkowska,Rafał Panek andKatarzyna Osińska
1Institute of Materials Engineering, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Silesia, 75 Pułku Piechoty 1A, 41-500 Chorzow, Poland
2Institute of Electronics and Information Technology, University of Technology, 38A Nadbystrzycka Str., 20-618 Lublin, Poland
3Department of Construction Materials Engineering and Geoengineering, Lublin University of Technology, 40 Nadbystrzycka Str., 20-618 Lublin, Poland
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
This study examines the effects of La3+ doping on (Pb0.75Ba0.25)(Zr0.70Ti0.30)O3(PBZT) ceramics, which were synthesized using the conventional solid-state reaction method. X-ray diffraction analysis confirmed that the PBZT structure, including PBZT doped with La3+ at concentrations x = 1 at.% and x = 2 at.%, exhibited a rhombohedral (R3c) space group, while higher doping levels of x = 3 at.% and x = 4 at.% led to a dominant cubic (Pm-3m) phase with approximately 30% of a remnant rhombohedral component. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM, JEOL JSM-7100F TTL LV, Jeol Ltd., Tokyo, Japan) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) were utilized to investigate the structure and morphology of these ceramics. The findings indicated that the chemical composition of the ceramic samples closely corresponded to the initial stoichiometry of the ceramic powder. An increase in the amount of lanthanum results in a decrease in the average grain size of the ceramics. The electrical properties were further evaluated using complex impedance spectroscopy (IS) over a range of temperatures and frequencies, as well as temperature dependence of DC conductivity. The similarity in the changes in activation energy for DC conductivity and grain boundary conductivity, caused by lanthanum ion modification, allows for the conclusion that grain boundaries are the primary microstructural element responsible for conductivity in these materials.
Keywords: impedance spectroscopy; PBZT ceramics; lanthanum doping; X-ray diffraction; scanning electron microscopy; activation energy