Crystal Structure and Electrical Properties of Ruthenium-Substituted Calcium Copper Titanate

This paper reports a detailed study of crystal structure and dielectric properties of ruthenium-substituted calcium-copper titanates (CaCu Ti Ru O , CCTRO). A series of three samples with different stoichiometry was prepared: CaCu Ti Ru O , = 0, 1 and 4, abbreviated as CCTO, CCT3RO and CCRO, respectively. A detailed structural analysis of CCTRO samples was done by the Rietveld refinement of XRPD data. The results show that, regardless of whether Ti or Ru ions are placed in crystallographic position in ' O (CaCu Ti Ru O ) unit cell, the crystal structure remains cubic with Im3¯ symmetry. Slight increases in the unit cell parameters, cell volume and interatomic distances indicate that Ru ions with larger ionic radii (0.62 Å) than Ti (0.605 Å) are incorporated in the CaCu Ti Ru O crystal lattice. The structural investigations were confirmed using TEM, HRTEM and ADF/STEM analyses, including EDXS elemental mapping. The effect of Ru atoms share in CaCu Ti Ru O samples on their electrical properties was determined by impedance and dielectric measurements. Results of dielectric measurements indicate that one atom of ruthenium per CaCu Ti Ru O unit cell transforms dielectric CCTO into conductive CCT3RO while preserving cubic crystal structure. Our findings about CCTO and CCT3RO ceramics promote them as ideal tandem to overcome the problem of stress on dielectric-electrode interfaces in capacitors.