Triple Hysteresis Loops of PLZST Ceramics Related to Coexistence of Ferroelectricity and Antiferroelectricity.

The hysteresis behaviors and phase characteristics of Pb0.97La0.02(Zr0.90Sn0.025Ti0.075)O3 ( PLZST) ceramics were investigated in this work. A single mini hysteresis loop at 3 kV/mm with the maximum polarization ( Pmax) of 8.3 μC/cm2 and triple hysteresis loops at 6.6 kV/mm were observed, which indicates the coexistence of rhombohedral ferroelectric phase and tetragonal antiferroelectric phase. The X-ray Diffraction patterns and dielectric temperature spectra both demonstrate this coexistence. Moreover, the hysteresis loops with increasing temperature indicated that a ferroelectric-antiferroelectric phase transition occurred at about 60°C. These phenomena would be useful for understanding the domain evolution during ferroelectric and antiferroelectric phase transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]