Preparation and Dielectric Properties of K(1/2)Na(1/2)NbO(3) Ceramics Obtained from Mechanically Activated Powders

Alkaline based materials have been considered as a replacement for environmentally harmful Pb(Zr,Ti)O(3) (PZT) electro-ceramics. In this paper, the K(1/2)Na(1/2)NbO(3) (KNN) ceramics were prepared in a three stage process: first Nb(2)O(5), Na(2)CO(3,) and K(2)CO(3) were milled in a high energy mill (shaker type) for different periods, between 25 h and 100 h, consecutively a solid state reaction was carried out at 550 °C. Finally, the uniaxially pressed samples were sintered at 1000 °C. The reaction temperature is lower for mechanically activated powders than in the case of the conventional solid-state method. The ceramic samples, prepared from the mechanically activated powders, were investigated by dielectric spectroscopy. The influence of the duration of the mechanical activation on the properties of the ceramic materials, e.g., ceramic microstructures, phase transition temperatures, character of the temperature dependences of dielectric permittivity, are discussed.