Structural, Ferroelectric, Pyroelectric, and Dielectric Study of Bi0.5Na0.5TiO3 Ceramics synthesized with Precursors Obtained by Sol-Gel Method doped with Lanthanum

In this work, the ferroelectric, pyroelectric and dielectric properties of La-doped bismuth sodium titanate ceramics (BNLT) using amounts from 0 to 6.7 at.% La were studied. The precursor powders used to make dense BNLT ceramics were obtained by the sol-gel method using the acetic acid route. All samples were calcined at 700°C for 1hr and sintered at 1150°C for 30 min in an encapsulated crucible to avoid Na and Bi volatilization, obtaining relative densities equal or higher than 94%. The obtained X-ray diffraction patterns typical of the perovskite structure, confirm the incorporation of lanthanum into the lattice, evolving from rhombohedral phase to a mixture of rhombohedral and cubic structure for higher concentrations. Thermogravimetry (TG) and Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) results indicate that the crystallization of precursors powders of BNT takes place between 500 and 700°C. Additionally, the Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) micrographs reveal a decrement of grain size from 4.5 to 0.5 μm with increasing La content. The ferroelectric hysteresis curves show that the best ferroelectric properties were obtained for BNT 1.3% La, where the obtained values of remnant polarization and coercive field were Pr=29 μC/cm2 and Ec=39 kV/cm respectively. Also, at this concentration, the pyroelectric response shows the higher value, 4 times the pyroelectric signal of the pure BNT.