Chemical composition of Li(4−2x)NixTi2O6 by sol–gel method and microwave processing

Abstract

The series of Li(4−2x)NixTi2O6 (where x = 0, 0.25, 0.50 and 0.75) is synthesized by sol–gel method and further microwave processed. The X-ray diffraction confirmed the single phase formation of monoclinic crystal structure and the average crystal size is calculated to be between 35 and 44 nm. The Fourier transformation infra-red analysis confirmed the vibrational bond frequency of the sample. The high-resolution scanning electron microscope revealed uniform morphology and the average particle size is found to be 15–30 nm. The temperature dependent dielectric constant is measured in the temperature range 30–560 °C. A drastic change in the dielectric is noticed after 370 °C in all the compositions. The complex impedance spectrum confirms the electron hopping conduction and non-Debye type behaviour at all the recorded temperatures. The Cole–Cole plots suggested grain conduction for all the compositions except for x = 0.75, where other contributions are suspected.