Effects of Ba(Ti0.90Sn0.10)O3 on Electrical Properties of Bi0.5Na0.5TiO3-0.06BaTiO3 Lead-Free Piezoelectric Ceramic System

Lead-free piezoelectric ceramics with the composition of (1-x)[Bi0.5Na0.5TiO3-0.06BaTiO(3)]-xBa(Ti0.90Sn0.10)O-3 or (1-x)[BNT-0.06BT]-xBTS ternary system (where x = 0, 0.01, 0.02, 0.03, 0.04 and 0.05 mol fraction) have been synthesized by a conventional mixed-oxide method. The optimum sintering condition for all samples was found to be 1125 degrees C/2 h with a heating/cooling rate of 5 degrees C/min. The relative densities of all samples were similar to 98% with the accompanying linear shrinkage of similar to 18%. The XRD patterns of all samples showed no detected impurity phase. It was found that the composition of x = 0.03 exhibited optimum electrical properties (epsilon(r) = 1895, tan delta = 0.0355 and d(33) = 255 pC/N at room temperature), suggesting that this composition had potential to be a promising lead-free piezoelectric candidate compound for dielectric and piezoelectric applications.