Effect of LiO2 and PbO additions on abnormal grain growth in the Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O-3-35 mol% PbTiO3 system

Abstract

Abnormal grain growth in Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O-3-35 mol% PbTiO3 (PMN-35PT) ceramics doped with Li2O and PbO has been investigated. Replacing the PbO dopant with up to 2 mol% Li2O caused an increase in the number of abnormal grains. For the composition containing 2 mol% Li2O and 6 mol% PbO, the amount of abnormal grain growth decreased with increasing sintering temperature. Single crystals of similar to6 mm x 6 mm x 2 mm thickness were grown from the 2 mol% Li2O, 6 mol% PbO-containing composition via the templated grain growth method. Grain growth behavior with temperature is explained in terms of the effect of Li2O on interface-reaction-controlled grain growth and the critical driving force.