Kinetics of {001} Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O-3-35 mol% PbTiO3 single crystals grown by seeded polycrystal conversion

The kinetics of {001}-oriented Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O-3-35 mol% PbTiO3 (PMN-35PT) single crystals grown by seeded poly-crystal conversion were systematically quantified as a function of excess PbO liquid phase. The coarsening behavior of the corresponding matrix grains was similarly quantified. Single-crystal seed plates were embedded in a matrix of PMN-35PT with varying amounts of liquid phase (PbO) content in the range of 0 to 5 vol% and annealed at 1150degreesC for 0-10 h. Apparent maxima in the growth rates were observed at a PbO content of similar to3 vol% for both the single crystal and matrix grains. In both cases, the growth data were found to most closely follow cubic growth kinetics. Implications regarding the effect of PbO volume fraction on the matrix and single-crystal growth mechanisms are discussed.