The temperature variation of planar electromechanical coupling coefficient (kp) in Pb(ZrxTi1−x)O3(PZT) ceramics near the morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) compositions has been correlated with structural changes to show that the maximum electromechanical response at a given composition (x) is a function of temperature (T) and occurs in the tetragonal phase field just outside the two-phase MPB region in the (x,T) plane. This clearly disproves the hypothesis that the coexistence of rhombohedral and tetragonal phases at MPB is responsible for the enhancement of the electromechanical response. In fact, coexistence of the rhombohedral phase with the tetragonal phase is shown to lead to the lowering of the electromechanical response.
A novel, simple, and fast solid-state procedure has been demonstrated for the synthesis of Pb(Zr,Ti)O 3 (PZT), using microwave radiation. The process consists of starting with the respective oxides mixed in the required proportions and exposing the charge to the microwaves. By making one or more of the constituent oxides slightly nonstoichiometric, enormous enhancement in reaction rates has been achieved, and singlephase PZT can be synthesized at temperatures as low as 600°C. Moreover, it has been shown that the combined use of nonstoichiometric precursors and microwave irradiation leads to different reaction pathways for the formation of PZT. Further, the microwave method diminishes PbO loss.
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