Growth and characterization of Pb0.97La0.02(Zr0.66Sn0.27Ti0.07)O3 antiferroelectric single crystals

Single crystals of Pb0.97La0.02(Zr0.66Sn0.27Ti0.07)O-3 (PLZST) with the composition near the morphotropic phase boundary were grown by the flux method. The PbO-PbF2-B2O3 system was used as a solvent. PLZST single crystals with the size of 4-6 mm are obtained and these crystals are slightly translucent after polishing. The splitting of (200) reflection peak indicates that the obtained crystals are of a single phase with tetragonal perovskite structure. The element contents of the grown crystals were measured by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry. The chemical composition of the crystals is Pb0.979La0.014(Zr0.666Sn0.285Ti0.049)O-3. Thermal properties and dielectric properties of PLZST single crystals were studied. The results show that flux-grown PLZST single crystals exhibit obvious endothermic processes and relaxor behaviors near the phase transition temperatures.