Structural and electrical properties of LiCo3/5Cu2/5VO4 ceramics

The LiCo3/5Cu2/5VO4 compound is prepared by a solution-based chemical method and characterized by the techniques of X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and complex impedance spectroscopy. The X-ray diffraction study shows an orthorhombic unit cell structure of the material with lattice parameters a=13.8263 (30) , b=8.7051 (30) and c=3.1127 (30) . The nature of scanning electron micrographs of a sintered pellet of the material reveals that grains of unequal sizes (similar to 0.2-3 mu m) present an average grain size with a polydisperse distribution on the surface of the sample. Complex plane diagrams indicate grain interior and grain boundary contributions to the electrical response in the material. The electrical conductivity study reveals that electrical conduction in the material is a thermally activated process. The frequency dependence of the a.c. conductivity obeys Jonscher's universal law.