Perovskite relaxor ferroelectrics have been widely developed for energy storage applications due to their exceptional dielectric properties. This work explores the energy storage performance, thermal stability, and structural evolution in (1-x)BiFeO3–x Ba(Ti0.8Zr0.2)O3 ceramics (x = 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, and 0.6) via modulating Ba(Ti0.8Zr0.2)O3 (BZT) concentration. An enhancement of breakdown electric field from 120 kV/cm at x = 0.3–220 kV/cm at x = 0.5 can be attributed to increased grain boundaries and nanodomains as electric barriers to inhibit charge mobility. A high recoverable energy density of 5.9 J/cm3 and a high energy efficiency of 86.2 % were achieved at x = 0.5 and 0.6, respectively. The structure shifts from ferroelectric rhombohedral R3c symmetry toward a coexistence of nonpolar symmetries (including tetragonal P4/mmm, cubic Pm-3m, and orthorhombic Pbnm) with increasing BZT. The integration of BZT in BiFeO3 demonstrates to break the long-range order and promote the formation of polar nanoregions and nanodomains, leading to a high-efficiency energy storage.
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