Dielectric properties of low Zr-substituted BaTi4O9 at microwave frequencies

The microwave dielectric properties and microstructures of Ba(Ti1-xZrx)(4)O-9 (0x0.025) ceramics prepared using the conventional solid-state route were investigated. When x was increased from 0 to 0.0125, the Qxf value of the specimen increased from 32,600GHz to a maximum of 63,700GHz, and the epsilon(r) value increased from 34.6 to 35.5. The structure and microstructure were analyzed using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The dielectric properties were correlated with various x values. With x=0.0125, the excellent microwave dielectric properties of epsilon(r)similar to 35.5, Qxf similar to 63,700GHz (at 8GHz), and (f)similar to 13ppm/degrees C were obtained for Ba(Ti0.9875Zr0.0125)(4)O-9 ceramics sintered at 1300 degrees C for 4h.