Water-induced degradation in 0.91Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)O3–0.09PbTiO3 single crystals

Abstract

Water-induced degradation in 0.91Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)O3–0.09PbTiO3 (PZN–PT) single crystals was studied through an electrochemical hydrogen charging process, in which silver electrodes were fired onto the single crystals and hydrogen was deposited on the electrodes via electrolysis of water in 0.01 M NaOH solution. The degradation was characterized by dramatic increases in the leakage current and in the dielectric loss of the crystals. X-ray diffraction analysis showed that the crystals were decomposed into metallic lead, zinc, and a niobium-rich face-centered-cubic phase. Water-induced degradation limits the application of PZN–PT single crystals.