Microstructure and electrical properties of Pb(Zr0.5Ti0.5)O3-Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)O3-Pb(Ni1/3Nb2/3)O3+xS3Ti2O7 ceramics

Abstract 0.83Pb(Zr 0.5 Ti 0.5 )O 3 − 0.11Pb(Zn 1/3 Nb 2/3 )O 3 − 0.06Pb(Ni 1/3 Nb 2/3 )O 3 (PZNNT) ceramics with different content of plate-like Sr 3 Ti 2 O 7 compound was prepared. Effect of Sr 3 Ti 2 O 7 amount and sintering temperature on the microstructures and piezoelectric properties of PZNNT ceramics were investigated. The results revealed that the content of tetragonal phase at morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) and grain size decreased significantly by increasing Sr 3 Ti 2 O 7 content. In addition, with further increase of sintering temperature for better density, the content of tetragonal phase and electric properties of PZNNT-5 wt%Sr 3 Ti 2 O 7 ceramics gradually increased. The optimal piezoelectric and dielectric properties of PZNNT-5 wt%Sr 3 Ti 2 O 7 ceramics sintered at 1040 °C for 2 h was d 33 = 572 pC/N, d 33 × g 33 = 17,630 × 10 –15 m 2 /N and k p = 0.57, which is potential candidate materials used for piezoelectric energy harvesting.