Compositional range and electrical properties of the morphotropic phase boundary in the Na0.5Bi0.5TiO3-K0.5Bi0.5TiO3 system

We have investigated the Na0.5Bi0.5TiO3-K0.5Bi0.5TiO3 (NBT-KBT) system, with its complex perovskite structure, as a promising material for piezoelectric applications. The NBT-KBT samples were synthesized using a solid-state reaction method and characterized with XRD and SEM. Room-temperature XRD showed a gradual change in the crystal structure from tetragonal in the KBT to rhombohedral in the NBT, with the presence of an intermediate morphotropic region in the samples with a compositional fraction x between 0.17 and 0.25. The fitted perovskite lattice parameters confirmed an increase in the size of the crystal lattice from NBT towards KBT, which coincides with an increase in the ionic radii. Electrical measurements on the samples showed that the maximum values of the dielectric constant, the remanent polarization and the piezoelectric coefficient are reached at the morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) (epsilon = 1140 at 1 MHz; P-r = 40 mu C/cm(2); d(33) = 134 pC/N). (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.