Structural and Electrical Properties of Bi_3NbTiO_9 Solid Solution

Bi3NbTiO9 (BNT) ceramic material with 95%-97% of the theoretical density was prepared by the conventional mixed-oxide method. Its Curie temperature (Tc) of 914℃ was measured to be almost the highest one among those of all the ceramics known up to date. And obviously, the piezoelectric ceramic can be used at higher temperatures. The crystal structure of the ceramic was examined by XRD method. Anisometric plate-like crystalline grains were observed by SEM, which revealed the layered structure of the material. Furthermore, the hysteresis (P - E) loop measurement showed a typical hard ferroelectricity in the Bi3NbTiO9 ceramics, and the piezoelectric constant (d33) measured was 7pC/N.