Large electrocaloric effect with ultrawide temperature span in Na1/2Bi1/2TiO3-based lead-free ceramics

Innovative cooling technologies are recognized by many industries as a crucial part of their system design. A large electrocaloric effect (ECE) and extended working temperature are the key issues hindering the realization of electrocaloric refrigeration technology. In this work, large ECE (ΔT = 0.8–0.9°C @ 4 kV/mm) with an ultrawide temperature span from 30 to 120°C is noted for lead-free (Na_1/2Bi_1/2)_0.80Sr_0.20(Zn_1/3Nb_2/3)_xTi_1-xO₃ ceramics. The excellent ECE performance can be ascribed to the evolution of polar nanoregions. Our work suggests that this material is promising for applications in solid-state refrigeration systems with a broad range of operating temperatures.     

Enhanced piezoelectric properties and electrocaloric effect in novel lead‐free (Bi0.5K0.5)TiO3‐La(Mg0.5Ti0.5)O3 ceramics

The crystal structure, electromechanical properties, and electrocaloric effect (ECE) in novel lead‐free (Bi_0.5K_0.5)TiO₃‐La(Mg_0.5Ti_0.5)O₃ ceramics were investigated. A morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) between the tetragonal and pseudocubic phase was found at x = 0.01‐0.02. In addition, the relaxor properties were enhanced with increasing the La(Mg_0.5Ti_0.5)O₃ content. In situ high‐temperature X‐ray diffraction patterns and Raman spectra were characterized to elucidate the phase transition behavior. The enhanced ECE (ΔT = 1.19 K) and piezoelectric coefficient (d₃₃ = 103 pC/N) were obtained for x = 0.01 at room temperature. Meanwhile, the temperature stability of the ECE was considered to be related to the high depolarization temperature and relaxor characteristics of the Bi_0.5K_0.5TiO₃‐based ceramics. The above results suggest that the piezoelectric and ECE properties can be simultaneously enhanced by establishing an MPB. These results also demonstrate the great potential of the studied systems for solid‐state cooling applications and piezoelectric‐based devices.     

Relaxor‐like behaviors in Na1/2Bi1/2Cu3Ti4O12 ceramics

Dielectric properties of Na_1/2Bi_1/2Cu₃Ti₄O₁₂ ceramics were evaluated over the temperature range 300‐720 K. Two relaxor‐like dielectric anomalies were found. The low‐temperature anomaly was confirmed to be an oxygen‐vacancy‐related relaxation process. It is a pseudo‐relaxor behavior caused by a bulk relaxation and a Maxwell‐Wagner relaxation. The high‐temperature one was evidenced to be an electric ferroelectric phase‐transition process resulting from the oxygen‐vacancy ordering.     

四方相Bi1/2Na1/2TiO3-BaTiO3无铅压电陶瓷的研究

采用电子陶瓷法制备出(1-x)Bi1/2Na1/2TiO3-xBaTiO3(简写BNBT)无铅压电陶瓷,其中x=0.08,0.1,0.2,0.3,0.4。XRD分析结果表明所制备的样品都生成了纯的钙钛矿结构,并且都为四方相。同时利用电子探针显微镜(EPM)分析技术,研究了BNBT压电陶瓷的形貌。并通过测量样品的压电介电常数,发现所研究的样品的机械品质因数(Qm)在56-74之间,平面机电耦合系数(kp)在0.16左右,频率常数(NФ)在3000左右,并且随着x的增大相对介电常数εT33/ε0逐渐变小;介质损耗tanδ先减小后增大,当x=0.20时出现最小值tanδmin=0.03018;而压电常数d33则先增加后减小,在x=0.10时有最大值d33max=138。从综合性能来看,当x=0.20时性能最好,εT33/ε0=881,tanδ=0.03018,d33=115。     

Re‐entrant relaxor behavior in BaTiO3‐Bi(Zn2/3Nb1/3)O3 ceramics

The (1?x)BaTiO₃?xBi(Zn_2/3Nb_1/3)O₃ (x=0.10‐0.25) ceramics were fabricated via solid‐state reactions. Temperature‐dependent polarization measurement reveals that with the temperature lowering, the remnant polarization increases till a maximum value before it decreases, showing a reentrant phenomenon. Absence of apparent switching current peaks in the current density as a function of electric field should indicate the lack of a ferroelectric transition, which is further verified by the consistent macroscopic phase structure from the Raman spectra. An anomalous peak in the full width at half maximum of a deconvoluted mode at ~515 cm^?1 suggests the entering of a more disordered state of dipolar dynamics, which may be originated from the competition between the freezing of polar nanoregions and the random interacting fields.     

Significantly reduced hysteresis in (Fe1/2Nb1/2)4+-modified 0.75Na1/2Bi1/2TiO3-0.25SrTiO3 lead-free piezoceramics with large strain

Aiming to get the NBT-based lead-free ceramic with high strain and low strain hysteresis for practical actuator applications, a solid solution of complex-ion (Fe_1/2Nb_1/2)⁴⁺doped 0.75Na_1/2Bi_1/2TiO₃-0.25SrTiO₃ ((Na_1/2Bi_1/2)_0.75Sr_0.25Ti_1-x(Fe_1/2Nb_1/2)_xO₃, abbreviated as NBST-100xFN) was designed and prepared, and its phase structure, micromorphology, ferroelectric, strain, dielectric and piezoelectric performances were systematically investigated. It was found that the incorporation of (Fe_1/2Nb_1/2)⁴⁺ causes a structure transition from the ferroelectric/relaxor (FE/RE) mixed phases to relaxor (RE) phase, increasing to a promising strain performance at x = 0.04 featured by not only a moderate strain value of 0.26%, corresponding normalized strain d₃₃* of 371 pm/V, but also a very small strain hysteresis of 22%. In addition, the NBST-4FN ceramic sample also exhibits an unexceptionable frequency-dependence of unipolar strain. This study provides a new understanding and design idea for the practical actuator application of high strain NBT-based lead-free ceramics with ultra-low hysteresis.     

Large strain response with low driving field in Bi1/2Na1/2TiO3–Bi1/2K1/2TiO3–Bi(Mg2/3Nb1/3)O3 ceramics

The (1?x)(0.8Bi_1/2Na_1/2TiO₃–0.2Bi_1/2K_1/2TiO₃)?xBiMg_2/3Nb_1/3O₃ (100xBMN) ternary solid solutions were designed and prepared using a conventional solid‐state reaction. Temperature and compositional dependent ferroelectric, piezoelectric, dielectric features, and structural evolution were systematically studied. At the critical composition of 2BMN, a large bipolar strain of 0.43% was achieved at 55 kV/cm, and the normalized strain reaches to 862 pm/V at a low driving electric field of 40 kV/cm. It was found that the substitution of BiMg_2/3Nb_1/3O₃ induces a transformation from ferroelectric to relaxor phase by disrupting the long range ferroelectric order. Therefore, as the external electric field was applied, a relaxor‐ferroelectric phase transition will be induced. This is contributed to the giant strain. The results above suggest that such a ternary composition is a promising candidate for application to actuator.     

High-energy storage density in NaNbO3-modified (Bi0.5Na0.5)TiO3-BiAlO3-based lead-free ceramics under low electric field

Ceramic-based dielectric capacitor are highly suitable for pulsed power applications due to their high power density and excellent reliability. However, the ultrahigh applied electric field limit their applications in integrated electronic devices. In this work, (1−x){0.96(Bi_0.5Na_0.5)(Ti_0.995Mn_0.005)O₃-0.04BiAlO₃}-xNaNbO₃ (BNT-BA-xNN, x = 0, 0.04, 0.08, 0.12, and 0.16) ternary ceramics were designed to achieve excellent energy storage properties. It was found that the introduction of NaNbO₃ (NN) effectively increase the difference (ΔP) between P_max and P_r, resulting in an obvious enhancement of the energy storage properties. High recoverable energy storage density, responsivity, and power density, that is, W_rec = 2.01 J/cm³, ξ = W_rec/E = 130.69 J/(kV⋅m²), and P_D = 25.59 MW/cm³, accompanied with superior temperature stability were realized at x = 0.14 composition. In addition, the thermal stable dielectric properties of the sample can be prominently improved with increasing NN content. The temperature coefficient of capacitance (TCC) of x = 0.16 composition is lower than 15% over the temperature range from 49°C to 340°C, with a high dielectric permittivity of 1647 and a low dielectric loss (0.0107) at 150°C. All these features show that the BNT-BA-xNN ceramics are promising materials for energy storage application.     

织构化（Na_（1/2）Bi_（1/2））TiO_3-BaTiO_3无铅压电陶瓷晶粒定向生长机制

以熔盐法合成的片状SrTiO3晶粒为模板,利用模板晶粒生长（TGG）技术制备晶粒沿[001]方向为取向的0.94（Na1/2Bi1/2）TiO3-0.06BaTiO3（简写为BNBT6）无铅压电陶瓷,采用X线衍射仪（XRD）、扫描电子显微镜（SEM）对陶瓷试样进行表征,采用透射电子显微镜（TEM）观察SrTiO3与BNBT6基体界面的微观结构.结果表明,BNBT6陶瓷晶粒定向生长过程分为2个阶段：首先是异质外延生长阶段,即在片状模板晶粒的诱导下,BNBT6基体粉体在SrTiO3模板晶粒表面外延生长,形成与模板取向完全一致的单晶生长层的过程;其次是同质外延生长阶段,即单晶生长层生成后吞噬BNBT6基体粉体逐步生长得到各向异性的高取向BNBT6陶瓷的过程.     

Electrical properties and temperature stability of SrTiO3-modified (Bi1/2Na1/2)TiO3-BaTiO3-(K1/2Na1/2)NbO3 piezoceramics

SrTiO₃-modified lead-free piezoelectric ceramics, (0.93-x)Bi_0.5Na_0.5TiO₃-xSrTiO₃-0.06BaTiO₃-0.01 K_0.5Na_0.5NbO₃ [(BNT-xST)-BT-KNN, x = 0-0.06], were prepared using a conventional solid-state reaction method. The XRD structure analysis and electric properties characteristics revealed the ST-induced phase transformation from the ferroelectric phase to the relaxor phase and their coexistence state. Benefiting from the ST-destructed ferroelectric long-range orders, the high normalized strain value of 600 pm/V was obtained in the (BNT-0.02ST)-BT-KNN ceramic at 5 kV/mm. The ST-generated relaxor phase was found to have a constructive effect on improving the temperature stability and restraining the hysteresis of the electric-field-induced strain. The normalized strain of (BNT-0.06ST)-BT-KNN ceramics could be kept at a high value ~337 pm/V at elevated temperature up to 120°C.     

Piezoelectric and ferroelectric properties of (Bi,Na)TiO3–(Bi,Li)TiO3–(Bi,K)TiO3 ceramics for accelerometer application

The piezoelectric and ferroelectric properties of 0.76(Bi_0.5Na_0.5)TiO₃–0.04(Bi_0.5Li_0.5)TiO₃–0.2(Bi_0.5K_0.5)TiO₃ (abbreviated as 0.76BNT–0.04BLT–0.2BKT) ceramics were investigated to clarify the optimal sintering temperature, and the vibration characteristics were examined for a compression‐mode accelerometer assembly in which 0.76BNT–0.04BLT–0.2BKT ceramics sintered at the optimized temperature served as the piezoelectric elements. The increase in the grain size of the 0.76BNT–0.04BLT–0.2BKT ceramics with the sintering temperature provides a beneficial contribution to the piezoelectric coefficient; however, it detrimentally contributes to the depolarization temperature. The charge sensitivity of the prototype accelerometers was evaluated with changes in the seismic mass and the layer number of the piezoceramics. The deviation between the theoretical and measured values of charge sensitivity was less than 10%.     

Preparation and characterization of Pb(Lu1/2Nb1/2)O3–Pb(In1/2Nb1/2)O3–PbTiO3 ternary ferroelectric ceramics with high phase transition temperatures

To explore new relaxor‐PbTiO₃ systems for high‐power and high‐temperature electromechanical applications, a ternary ferroelectric ceramic system of Pb(Lu_1/2Nb_1/2)O₃–Pb(In_1/2Nb_1/2)O₃–PbTiO₃ (PLN–PIN–PT) have been investigated. The phase structure, dielectric, piezoelectric, and ferroelectric properties of the as‐prepared PLN–PIN–PT ceramics near the morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) were characterized. A high rhombohedral‐tetragonal phase transition temperature T_R‐T of 165°C and a high Curie temperature T_C of 345°C, together with a good piezoelectric coefficient d₃₃ of 420 pC/N, were obtained in 0.38PLN–0.20PIN–0.42PT ceramics. Furthermore, for (0.8?x)PLN–0.2PIN–xPT ceramics, the temperature‐dependent piezoelectric coefficients, coercive fields and electric‐field‐induced strains were further studied. At 175°C, their coercive fields were found to be above 9.5 kV/cm, which is higher than that of PMN–PT and soft P5H ceramics at room temperature, indicating PLN–PIN–PT ceramics to be one of the promising candidates in piezoelectric applications under high‐driven fields. The results presented here could benefit the development of relaxor‐PbTiO₃ with enhanced phase transition temperatures and coercive fields.     

Ferroelectric to Relaxor Transition in BaTiO3–Bi(Zn2/3Nb1/3)O3 Ceramics

The (1?x)BaTiO₃–xBi(Zn_2/3Nb_1/3)O₃ (x = 0.01–0.30) ceramics were synthesized by solid‐state reactions. The solubility limit was determined to be x = 0.20. A systematic structural transition from a tetragonal phase (x ≤ 0.034), to a mixture of tetragonal and rhombohedral phases (0.038 ≤ x ≤ 0.20), and finally to a pseudocubic phase (x ≥ 0.22) at room temperature was identified. Dielectric measurement revealed a ferroelectric (x ≤ 0.04) to relaxor (x ≥ 0.06) transition with permittivity peak broadening and flattening, which was further verified by Raman spectroscopy and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Activation energies obtained from the Vogel–Fulcher model displayed an increasing trend from ~0.03 eV for x ~ 0.05, to unusually high values (>0.20 eV) for the compositions with x ≥ 0.15. With the increase in Bi(Zn_2/3Nb_1/3)O₃ content, the polarization hysteresis demonstrated a tendency from high nonlinearity to sublinearity coupled with the reduction in remnant polarization and coervice field. The deconvolution of the irreversible/reversible polarization contribution was enabled by first‐order reversal curve distributions, which indicates that the decreasing polarization nonlinearity with the increase in Bi(Zn_2/3Nb_1/3)O₃ concentration could be related with the change from the ferroelectric domain and domain wall contributions to the weakly coupled relaxor behaviors.     

(Bi1/2Na1/2)TiO3-BaTiO3系无铅压电陶瓷结构与性能的研究

采用XRD,SEM,HRTEM等分析技术对(1-x)(Bi1/2Na1/2)TiO3-xBaTiO3(简称为BNBT)(x为0.04,0.06,0.08,0.10)进行了结构与性能的研究,并主要分析了x为0.06,即0.94(Bi1/2Na1/2)TiO3-0.06BaTiO3(简称为BNBT6)在不同烧结温度下的结构形态及其对性能的影响.结果表明:(1-x)(Bi1/2Na1/2)TiO3-xBaTiO3系统具有很窄的烧结范围.另外,加入过量的Ba2+,能起到阻碍晶粒长大的作用.     

Conduction Mechanisms in BaTiO3–Bi(Zn1/2Ti1/2)O3 Ceramics

Polycrystalline BaTiO₃–Bi(Zn_1/2Ti_1/2)O₃ (BT–BZT) ceramics have superior dielectric properties for high‐temperature and high‐energy density applications as compared to the existing materials. While it has been shown that the addition of BZT to BT leads to an improvement in resistivity by two orders of magnitude, in this study impedance spectroscopy is used to demonstrate a novel change in conduction mechanism. While nominally undoped BT exhibits extrinsic‐like p‐type conduction, it is reported that BT–BZT ceramics exhibit intrinsic n‐type conduction using atmosphere‐dependent conductivity measurements. Annealing studies and Seebeck measurements were performed and confirmed this result. For BT, resistivity values were higher for samples annealed in nitrogen as compared to oxygen, whereas the opposite responses were observed for BZT‐containing solid solutions. This suggests a fundamental change in the defect equilibrium conditions upon the addition of BZT to the solid solution that lowered the carrier concentration and changed the sign of the majority charge carrier. This is then also linked to the observed improvement in resistivity in BT–BZT ceramics as compared to undoped BT.     

Thermal depolarization and electromechanical hardening in Zn2+-doped Na1/2Bi1/2TiO3-BaTiO3

Na_1/2Bi_1/2TiO₃-based materials have been earmarked for one of the first large-volume applications of lead-free piezoceramics in high-power ultrasonics. Zn²⁺-doping is demonstrated as a viable route to enhance the thermal depolarization temperature and electromechanically harden (1-y)Na_1/2Bi_1/2TiO₃-yBaTiO₃ (NBT100yBT) with a maximum achievable operating temperature of 150 °C and mechanical quality factor of 627 for 1 mole % Zn²⁺-doped NBT6BT. Although quenching from sintering temperatures has been recently touted to enhance T_F-R, with quenching the doped compositions featuring an additional increase in T_F-R by 17 °C, it exhibits negligible effect on the electromechanical properties. The effect is rationalized considering the missing influence on conductivity and therefore, negligible changes in the defect chemistry upon quenching. High-resolution diffraction indicates that Zn²⁺-doped samples favor the tetragonal phase with enhanced lattice distortion, further corroborated by ²³Na Nuclear Magnetic Resonance investigations.     

Composition and temperature dependence of structure and piezoelectricity in (1−x)(K1−yNay)NbO3‐x(Bi1/2Na1/2)ZrO3 lead‐free ceramics

Lead‐free piezoceramics with the composition (1?x)(K_1?yNa_y)NbO₃‐x(Bi_1/2Na_1/2)ZrO₃ (KNyN‐xBNZ) were prepared using a conventional solid‐state route. X‐ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and dielectric measurements as a function of temperature indicated the coexistence of rhombohedral (R) and tetragonal (T) phase, typical of a morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) as the BNZ concentration increased and by adjusting the K/Na ratio. High remnant polarization (P_r=24 μC/cm²), piezoelectric coefficient (d₃₃=320 pC/N), effective piezocoefficient ({d_{33}^*}=420 pm/V), coupling coefficient (k_p=48%), and high strain (S=0.168%) were obtained at room temperature, but significant deterioration of P_r, {d_{33}^*}, and k_p were observed by increasing from room temperature to 160°C (17.5 μC/cm², 338 pm/V, and 32%, respectively) associated with a transition to a purely T phase. Despite these compositions showing promise for room‐temperature applications, the deterioration in properties as a function of increasing temperature poses challenges for device design and remains to be resolved.     

Palladium‐Catalyzed Intramolecular Annulation of 3‐[2‐(2‐Iodobenzylamino)aryl]‐N‐arylpropiolamides: Synthesis of 3‐[5H‐Dibenzo[b,e]azepin‐11(6H)‐ylidene]indolin‐2‐ones

A novel palladium‐catalyzed intramolecular tandem annulation method is presented for the synthesis of 3‐[5H‐dibenzo[b,e]azepin‐11(6H)‐ylidene]indolin‐2‐ones. This method allows the conversion of various 3‐[2‐(2‐iodobenzylamino)aryl]‐N‐arylpropiolamides to the corresponding 3‐[5H‐dibenzo[b,e]azepin‐11(6H)‐ylidene]indolin‐2‐ones through the diarylation of an alkyne.     

Comparison of direct electrocaloric characterization methods exemplified by 0.92 Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3‐0.08 PbTiO3 multilayer ceramics

Electrocaloric device structures have been developed as multilayer ceramics (MLCs) based on fundamental research carried out on PMN‐8PT bulk ceramics. Two different MLC structures were prepared with nine layers each and layer thicknesses of 86 μm and 39 μm. The influence of the device design on its properties has been characterized by microstructural, dielectric, ferroelectric, and direct electrocaloric measurement. For direct characterization two different methods, ie temperature reading (thermistor and thermocouple) and heat flow measurement (differential scanning calorimetry), were used. A comparison of results revealed a highly satisfactory agreement between the different methods. This study confirms that MLCs are promising candidates for implementation into energy‐efficient electrocaloric cooling systems providing large refrigerant volume and high electrocaloric effect. Due to their micron‐sized active layers, they allow for the application of high electric fields under low operation voltages. We measured a maximum electrocaloric temperature change of ΔT=2.67 K under application/withdrawal of an electric field of ΔE=16 kV mm^?1, which corresponds to operation voltages below 1.5 kV.     

Lead-free pyroelectric infrared detector based on (Bi1/2Na1/2)TiO3-BaTiO3 ferroelectric ceramics

In this paper, we theoretically and experimentally reported a lead-free pyroelectric infrared (PIR) detector using (Bi_1/2Na_1/2TiO₃)-BaTiO₃(BNT-BT) ferroelectric ceramics as the sensitive material. The variation of noise density, voltage response rate (R_V), and specific detection rate (D*) with the modulation frequency under the current mode amplification circuit was investigated, and it was found that the lead-free PIR detector showed high R_V in the low frequency band. The R_V and D* reached 1.51 × 10⁵ V/W and 2.02 × 10⁸ cmHz^1/2W⁻¹ at 10 Hz, respectively. The results were much superior to the PIR based on traditional commercial pyroelectric ceramics, indicating that BNT-BT lead-free ceramics have great potential in application to PIR detectors.