Dielectric and piezoelectric properties of porous PZT–PCN ceramics sintered at different temperatures

• Porous ceramics (PZT–PCN) were fabricated by introducing pore-forming agents.
• An increase in density with temperature increased d33 and εr.
• This ‘in turn’ enhanced the hydrostatic figure of merit (dhgh) of ceramic.
• The dhgh of porous ceramic was several times higher than that of dense sample.
• The higher the temperature was, the more connected grains were observed.

Porous lead zirconate titanate–lead cobalt niobate 0.8Pb(Zr1/2Ti1/2)O3–0.2Pb(Co1/3Nb2/3)O3 (PZT–PCN) piezoelectric ceramics were fabricated by introducing pore-forming agent polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), and the effect of sintering behavior on their microstructure, dielectric, and piezoelectric properties were investigated. The optimum sintering procedure was designed according to the thermogravimetric analysis of pore former. Finally the electrical properties were measured.The porosity of PZT–PCN ceramics decreased and the grain size increased with an increase in the sintering temperature at a fixed PMMA addition.“An increase in density with sintering temperature from 1050 to 1250 °C results into an increase in longitudinal piezoelectric coefficient (d33) and relative dielectric constant (εr). This ‘in turn’ enhanced the hydrostatic figure of merit (dhgh) of the ceramics material”.The hydrostatic figure of merit (dhgh) of 24% porous PZT–PCN ceramics was eleven times more than that of dense ceramic. This kind of porous ceramic could be a promising candidate for medical diagnostic devices.