Flux growth and characterization of (1−x)PbMg1/3Nb2/3O3–xPbTiO3 single crystals

Single crystals of (1−x)PbMg1/3Nb2/3O3–xPbTiO3, (1−x)PMN–x  PT, solid solutions from the whole concentration range (0⩽x⩽1)(0⩽x⩽1) were grown using the flux method. The PbO–Pb3O4–B2O3 system was used as a solvent. Transparent and yellow (1−x)PMN–xPT single crystals of rectangular shape and dimensions up to 6×6×4 mm3 were obtained. For the applied growth conditions only the crystals of the perovskite structure have been grown. The chemical composition of single crystals was determined by energy dispersion spectrometry EDS technique. These measurements showed that Ti concentrations in the grown crystals were smaller than in the solutions. The crystals were examined also by X-ray diffraction and dielectric studies. They showed that with the increase of Ti content the room temperature symmetry changes from cubic to rhombohedral, then to monoclinic and finally to tetragonal. The observed phase transition transforms gradually from the relaxor type to normal ferroelectric one and shifts towards higher temperatures.