Study of impedance parameters of cerium modified lead zirconate titanate ceramics

A high-temperature solid-state reaction technique was used to prepare the polycrystalline samples of cerium (Ce) modified lead zirconate titanate with Zr/Ti ratio 65:35 (i.e., Pb(Zr_0.65-xCe_xTi_0.35)O₃ (PZCT)). Preliminary X-ray structural analysis exhibits the formation of the new compositions of PZT. In order to study the compositional effects on the electrical properties (complex impedance Z*, complex modulus M*, electrical conductivity and relaxation mechanisms) of PZCT, a nondestructive experimental technique (i.e., complex impedance spectroscopy) was used. The complex impedance analysis with Nyquist plots shows that the impedance parameters of all the PZCT samples contain bulk effect. The presence of single arc in the complex modulus spectra of PZCT confirms the single phase of PZCT with high relaxation time. The asymmetric behaviour of semi-circular arcs and shifting of peaks suggest the existence of non-Debye (Cole-Cole) type of relaxation mechanism in the PZCT systems.