Microstructural Evolution of Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 Ceramics Using Electron Paramagnetic Resonance

Abstract

AbstractUsing electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) we have followed the microstructural evolution with temperature of lead zirconate titanate (PZT) ceramics from the amorphous to the perovskite phase. A number of paramagnetic point defects were identified (Carbon, Pb+3, and Ti+3) while traversing the evolution of these ceramics during various heat treatments both before and after optical illumination. Perhaps the most important finding is that the Pb+3 and Ti+3 centers can only be optically created in the perovskite materials, thereby, showing that they are not associated with the amorphous or the pyrochlore phases. It is also found that EPR signals attributed to carbon radicals are present in fairly high concentrations (4 × 1017/cm3) if the solution chemistry derived PZT materials are annealed in an oxygen deficient ambient (0.1% O2) at 650°C.