Microstructural development of BaTiO3 powders synthesized by aqueous methods

Abstract

The hydrothermal growth of perovskite BaTiO3 powders has been studied by transmission electron microscopy. The growth is carried out under high alkaline conditions (pH — 14) achieved with Ba(OH)2. Anatase (TiO2) is used as a titanium source. The perovskite BaTiO3 nucleates heterogeneously on anatase TiO2 particles with an epitaxial relationship of (001)TiO2 ‖ (001)BaTiO3 and [010]TiO2 ‖ [010]BaTiO3. This epitaxial relationship preserves the parallel alignment of the oxygen octahedra between the structures. A mosaic misorientation between (001)TiO2 and (001)BaTiO3 along 〈110〉 is seen in this relationship due to the lattice mismatch between TiO2 and BaTiO3. After complete conversion of the anatase to BaTiO3, the BaTiO3 particles develop into {111} octahedrons with ∼10 nm {001} and {110} microfacets on the {111} faces. This evolution suggests that {111} becomes the stable crystallographic facet for BaTiO3 under highly alkaline conditions.