Interval percolation and ceramic-metal composite

The mixture of the BaTiO3 ceramic powder and silver ink was baked, and the bulk property of positive temperature coefficient (PTC) of BaTiO3 was recovered in the composite. An interval percolation model was put forward to describe this composite. Monte-Carlo simulation confirmed that the bulk property can be surely recovered in a cubic network if the fraction of conductive sites is in the range of 0.101-0.311. Moreover, experimental works indicated that the percolation threshold decreased with the increase of the size of ceramic particles, and the PTC bulk property appeared more obviously at higher electrical field.