Preparation and characterization of 1D Ce3+-doped BaTiO3 nanostructures

The preparation by template-mediated colloidal chemistry, as well as the morphology and structural / functional properties of some 1D Ce-doped BaTiO3 nanostructures with the nominal formula Ba0.95Ce0.05Ti0.9875O3, were... [ view full abstract ]

The preparation by template-mediated colloidal chemistry, as well as the morphology and structural / functional properties of some 1D Ce-doped BaTiO₃ nanostructures with the nominal formula Ba_0.95Ce_0.05Ti_0.9875O₃, were described in this work. Porous polycarbonate membranes with channels diameter of 100 nm and 200 nm, respectively, were used as templates. The uncalcined nanowires obtained by using as template the membrane with channels diameter of 100 nm show an average diameter of about 81 nm, while the uncalcined tubes prepared by using the membrane with channels diameter of 200 nm show an average outer diameter of 189 nm and a wall thickness of 15 nm. FE-SEM analyses indicated that after thermal treatment in air, at 700 °C for 1 hour, the amorphous 1D structures were converted into crystalline Ce³⁺-doped BaTiO₃ nanowires and nanoshell tubes of length up to 17 mm. The calcined nanowires with an average diameter of 60 nm present a dense microstructure, with grains of 20 – 25 nm, which consist of small crystallites of 3 – 6 nm, while the crystalline nanoshell tubes exhibit an average outer diameter of 157 nm, higher porosity and larger grains (average grain size of 38 nm), consisting of  crystallites of 6 – 9 nm. PFM investigations indicated ferroelectric and piezoelectric characteristics for all the 1D Ba_0.95Ce_0.05Ti_0.9875O₃  nanostructures described in this study.