Structural, dielectric and electrical properties of cerium-modified strontium manganite ceramics

In this communication, structural, dielectric, spectroscopic and electrical characteristics of cerium-modified strontium manganite perovskite of a composition SrMn0.9Ce0.1O3, (SMCO) prepared by a high-temperature solid-state reaction technique have been reported. The preliminary structural analysis of SrMnO3 exhibits hexagonal (P63/mmc) crystal structure, whereas SMCO, synthesized under identical conditions, shows a tetragonal (I4/mmm) structure. The average crystallite size and lattice strain of SMCO using X-ray data were found to be 74 nm and 0.107%, respectively. The surface morphology, study by the scanning electron microscopy (SEM), shows distinct grains of average size of 19.2 mu m. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) study confirms the oxidation state of Mn and Ce as Mn4+ and Ce4+ and composition of SMCO compound. The grains and the grain boundaries play an important role to explain the conduction mechanism. The bulk resistance (R-b) decreases from 1.020 x 10(5) Omega at 25 degrees C to 1.096 x 10(3) Omega at 500 degrees C. This behaviour of decrease in resistance with the increase in temperature shows semiconductor (negative temperature coefficient resistance) nature of the material at high temperatures. The variation of the activation energies with temperature suggests that the ac conductivity is thermally activated. The immobile charge carriers at low temperatures and defects and oxygen vacancies at high temperatures are responsible for the thermally activated conduction mechanism. Detailed studies of electrical parameters as a function of frequency at different temperatures using dielectric and impedance spectroscopy of SMCO have provided conduction mechanism and structural properties relationship.

Automated summary

This study reports the structural, dielectric, spectroscopic, and electrical characteristics of cerium-modified strontium manganite perovskite SMCO prepared by a high-temperature solid-state reaction technique. The SMCO compound exhibits a tetragonal crystal structure, with an average crystallite size of 74 nm, and shows semiconductor properties.