Ferroelectric studies and impedance analysis of PLZT (10/52/48) electroceramics

Perovskite Pb0.90La0.10(Zr0.52Ti 0.48)O3 ceramic material was prepared through sol-gel process. Structural, phase formation and thermal properties were confirmed by X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetry and differential thermal analysis; size and microstructural study was carried out using particle size analyser and scanning electron microscope. The electrical properties of the ceramics were investigated as a function of both temperature (from room temperature to 500 °C) and frequency (from 100 Hz to 1 MHz) using complex impedance spectroscopy (CIS). The impedance spectrum results indicate the decrease in dielectric constant with increase in frequency while the dielectric loss increases with frequency. The activation energy of the sample was calculated from the slope of the Arrhenius plot as 0.129 eV from the Arrhenius's plot of dc conductivity versus inverse of absolute temperature. The dc conductivity was obtained from CIS measurements and the activation energy. The remnant polarization (Pr) and coercive electric fields (Ec) are found out as 6.52 μC/cm and 2.55 kV/cm from the ferroelectric loop measured at room temperature. © Springer Science+Business Media New York 2012.