Abstract:

In our previous work, we synthesized Pb(Zr0.52Ti0.48)O3 (PZT) ceramics by conventional and microwave sintering methods and studied their structural and electrical properties. We observed that the microwave sintered PZT ceramics show higher densification, fine and uniform grain size, higher dielectric constant, remnant polarization (Pr), and spontaneous polarization (Ps) in comparison to conventional sintered ones. In the present work, we studied the microstructure, phase formation, dielectric, ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties of the PZT ceramics synthesized by using Spark plasma Sintering (SPS) method. The SPS sintering temperature is lower (300 to 400 °C) than both conventional and microwave sintering methods. The dielectric constant at room temperature and at transition temperature shows higher values compared to the microwave and conventional sintering methods. This SPS sintering technique is currently attracting growing attention among productions engineers and materials researchers.

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