Effect of Annealing on Ferroelectric Properties of Nanometre BaTiO₃ Ceramics Prepared by High Pressure Sintering Method

Dense nanocrystalline BaTiO₃ ceramics with a grain size of 50nm are prepared under 6GPa at 1273K using a high pressure sintering method. The sintered bulk is uniform and the relative density is above 97%. We anneal the ceramic samples in oxygen with various temperatures and for different times without apparent grain growth. After the annealing, several broadened peaks can be observed at about 378K by dielectric measurements. However, these peaks are very different from those of coarser-grained ceramics. It is indicated that both the elimination of oxygen vacancies and the release of residual stresses caused by high pressure greatly improve the overall ferroelectric properties of BaTiO₃ ceramics. The observation of nearly linear polarization hysteresis loop after anneal provides the solid evidence of ferroelectricity in these nano-sized BaTiO₃ ceramics. It is believed that the absence of 90° domains and the existence of poor-permittivity nonferroelectric grain boundaries contribute to the slim loop.