Electrical and Raman Spectroscopic Studies on Gd-Modified Strontium Bismuth Titanium Zirconium Oxide

<h2>Abstract</h2> <p><strong>Objectives:</strong> The work is focused on the electrical properties of rare earth (Gd3+) modified strontium titanate (GdxSrBi4-xTi3.85Zr0.15O15; x=0.15, 0.25, and 0.50) novel ceramics to understand the plausible reason for dielectric relaxations in IR region. <strong>Methods:</strong> The above compounds were prepared by conventional solid-state route. Crystalline information was obtained by X-ray diffraction patterns. The distribution of Gd ion into the (Bi2O2)2+ bismuth oxide layer was studied by Raman spectroscopic analysis. Impedance and dielectric measurements were performed, using an impedance analyzer, model Auto-Lab PGSTAT30 and NOVA11.1. A detailed electrical analysis was adopted to understand the inherited electrical properties of the materials. <strong>Findings:</strong> The surface morphology was found to be a plate-like structure. The grain size was found to decrease with increasing the Gd+3 content in the lattice. The SGBT-0.50 sample has shown a transition temperature of around 500°C. Temperature impedance spectroscopic plots have shown dielectric relaxations. The spectroscopic peak maximum is found to shift towards the higher frequency side with increasing temperature. The spectroscopic data is compared to the dielectric and Raman modes. Based on the high conductivity at higher temperatures, it clearly indicates that these ceramics can be useful dielectrics for high-temperature applications. <strong>Novelty:</strong> The activation energy, calculated from the electrical studies, and the high gran resistance suggests the involvement of ionization of oxygen vacancies in the conduction process. A detailed conductivity analysis using Jonscher’s Universal law confirms the same. We have come across a few reports on magnetic ions namely Gd in bismuth-layered structure ferroelectric (BLSF) ceramics. In this paper, we have discussed the fabrication of compounds, structural information, dielectric, impedance and AC-conductivity properties.</p> <p><strong>Keywords:</strong> Solid - state reaction method, XRD, Raman, Impedance, Dielectric constant</p>