Ferroelectricity was induced in SrTiO3 by the Sr exchange for Pr ion in the A site of the perovskite ABO3-type structure. X-ray diffraction patterns show single phase crystalline structure in the SrxPr1-xTiO3 compound for x=0, 0.025, 0.050, 0.075 and 0.1 compositions. Rietveld refinement shows that the unit cell volume decreases with the increasing of Pr content as a consequence of the difference between Sr/Pr ionic radii. Furthermore, high-temperature differential thermoanalysis (DTA) displays a small anomaly at about 118 °C which is probably due to the Pr ion producing a distortion of the perovskite structure via an off-center site. This deformation in the lattice induces a measurable polar behavior of the solid solution. Dielectric permittivity (ε vs T) measurements display a well defined peak at about 238 °C. Furthermore, a well defined hysteresis loop at 30 °C with a remnant polarization that tends to decrease with increasing Pr concentration is observed. Both experimental results confirm the ferroelectric state induced by the Pr ion.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.