Co-Precipitation Synthesis and Characterization of SrBi2Ta2O9 Ceramic

Strontium bismuth tantalate (SrBi2Ta2O9) was synthesized by a co-precipitation method. The sample was characterized by x-ray powder diffraction patterns (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results of the dielectric properties are reported at room temperature. No secondary phases were found while heating the powder at 850A degrees C and the pure SrBi2Ta2O9 phase was formed, as revealed by XRD. The characteristic bands for SrBi2Ta2O9 were observed by FTIR at approximately 619 cm(-1) and 810 cm(-1). SEM micrographs for the sample displayed thin plate-like grains. The grain size was less than 1 mu m and the crystallite size of about 24 nm. Dielectric response at room temperature shows that the SrBi2Ta2O9 ceramic has low loss values, and the flattening of the dielectric constant at higher frequencies. The observed Curie temperature is comparable with those reported in the literature.