Nb-substituted or Ta-substituted strontium titanates were synthesized by conventional solid-state reactions. For perovskite-type titanates, Sr 1¹y Ti 1¹x M x O 3 , the lattice constant a was found to increase with the amount of dopant (x) added, to maximum values of 3.927 and 3.930 ¡ for M = Nb and Ta respectively, regardless of Sr deficiency (y). X-ray diffraction studies revealed that the Tasubstituted strontium titanate possesses a wider stable region in its perovskite-type structure against the amount of added dopant (x) and strontium deficiency (y), compared with the Nb-substituted structure. Even in the single phase regions of SrTi 1¹x M x O 3 (M = Nb and Ta) perovskites, scanning electron microscopy images confirmed that after firing at 1500°C for 10 h some SrTi 0.9 Ta 0.1 O 3 grains showed strontium and tantalum enrichment and titanium dilution, whereas no inhomogeneity was found in SrTi 0.9 Nb 0.1 O 3 . This cationic compositional fluctuation is consistent with the lower electrical conductivity of SrTi 0.9 Ta 0.1 O 3 compared with SrTi 0.9 Nb 0.1 O 3 at low temperatures.
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