Structural, Optical, and Dielectric Properties of Zirconium Titanate Ceramic Composite Synthesized by Solid-State Reaction

A ceramic material consisting of a binary oxide of zirconium and titanium, with a composition of titanium dioxide (TiO2)(0.15) doped with zirconium dioxide (ZrO2)(0.85), was synthesized using a solid-state reaction method and sintered at different temperatures such as room temperature, 800, 900, 1100, and 1200 degree celsius. X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique was employed to ascertain the grain size, d-spacing, dislocation density, and microstrain values. The synthesis of the samples revealed that the zirconium phase exhibited predominantly monoclinic characteristics up to a temperature of 1100degree celsius. However, a mixed phase consisting of monoclinic and tetragonal phases was found at the temperature of 1200degree celsius. The shift toward lower angle sides of the maximum intensity peak was seen with increased sintering temperature. The optical characteristics of synthesized pure zirconium and TiO2-doped ZrO(2 )nanoparticles were examined using UV-Vis diffuse absorption spectroscopy. The sintering temperature directly impacted the band gap, resulting in a drop from 5.44 to 5.24 eV. The research explored the relationship between the synthesized nanoparticles' frequency and dielectric properties such as dielectric constant, dielectric loss, and AC electrical conductivity. The dielectric constant and dielectric loss of ZrO2 doped with TiO2 demonstrated a significant decrease with increasing frequency. The phenomenon being discussed is widely recognized in the scientific community as Maxwell-Wagner polarization, following the theoretical framework put forward by Koop. The dielectric constant values observed in the unsintered samples were more significant than those observed in the sintered samples.

Automated summary

A ceramic material consisting of a binary oxide of zirconium and titanium was synthesized, and its crystal structure, optical properties, and dielectric properties were studied. The results showed that the sintering temperature influenced the grain size, crystal structure, and band gap, while the dielectric properties were affected by both frequency and sintering temperature.