Correlative chemical and structural nanocharacterization of a pseudo-binary 0.75Bi(Fe0.97Ti0.03)O3-0.25BaTiO3 ceramic

TL;DR

This study combines advanced electron microscopy techniques to analyze the complex nanostructure and phase composition of fast-cooled BiFeO3-BaTiO3 ceramics, revealing previously unidentified inner core phases.

Contribution

It introduces a novel correlative approach using EELS and SPED to precisely characterize heterogeneous microstructures at the nanoscale in these ceramics.

Findings

Identification of a new pseudocubic inner core phase.

Correlation between chemical composition and lattice structure.

Discovery of a three-phase assemblage in the microstructure.

Abstract

Fast-cooling after sintering or annealing of BiFeO3-BaTiO3 mixed oxide ceramics yields core-shell structures that give excellent functional properties, but their precise phase assemblage and nanostructure remains an open question. By comparing conventional electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) with scanning precession electron diffraction (SPED) mapping using a direct electron detector, we correlate chemical composition with the presence or absence of octahedral tilting and with changes in lattice parameters. This reveals that some grains have a 3-phase assemblage of a BaTiO3-rich pseudocubic shell; a BiFeO3-rich outer core with octahedral tilting consistent with an R3c structure; and an inner core richer in Ba and even poorer in Ti, which seems to show a pseudocubic structure of slightly smaller lattice parameter than the shell region. This last structure has not been previously identified in these materials, but the composition and structure fit with previous studies. These inner cores are likely to be non-polar and play no part in the ferroelectric properties. Nevertheless, the combination of EELS and SPED clearly provides a novel way to examine heterogeneous microstructures with high spatial resolution, thus revealing the presence of phases that may be too subtle to detect with more conventional techniques.