LAUSR

Abstract(Ba0.6Sr0.4)0.85Bi0.1TiO3 ceramics have been obtained by single-step, liquid-phase, solid-state reactive sintering in the temperature range 1250–1350 °C using stoichiometric amounts of BaTiO3, SrTiO3 and Bi4Ti3O12. Their microstructure and electrical properties have been studied by X-Ray diffraction and fluorescence, scanning and transmission electron microscopy and impedance spectroscopy. The relative density, Dr, relative permittivity, εr′$$ {\varepsilon}_r^{\prime } $$, and dissipation factor, tan δ, at room temperature and the bulk and grain boundary resistivity, Rb and Rgb, and activation energies, Eab$$ {E}_a^b $$ and Eagb$$ {E}_a^{gb} $$, are approximately independent of the sintering temperature with values around e.g. Dr ~97.5 %, εr′$$ {\varepsilon}_r^{\prime } $$ ~1790, tan δ ~0.06 %, Rb500oC$$ {R}_b^{500^oC} $$ ~26 kΩ cm, Eagb$$ {E}_a^{gb} $$ ~1.03 eV, Rgb500oC$$ {R}_{gb}^{500^oC} $$ ~217 kΩ cm and Eagb$$ {E}_a^{gb} $$ ~1.41 eV. By contrast, the temperature coefficient of capacitance, TCC, increases linearly from ~10 ppm oC−1 to ~21 ppm oC−1 on increasing sintering temperature. Comments on the influence of the sintering temperature on the chemical composition of the ceramics are made.