Growth and characterization of barium-doped potassium tantalate crystals

Potassium tantalate (KTaO3) crystals doped with barium were grown by top-seeded solution growth (TSSG) method. The effect of seed orientation on the external habit formation was studied. It was found that while using an (1 1 0)-oriented seed the crystal yield was much higher than (1 0 0)-oriented seed, also the crystal had a wide (1 0 0) plane. It was found that while using an (1 1 0) seed the barium doping was homogeneous without any striations. The presence of barium in the crystal was estimated by laser ablation induction-coupled plasma studies. The composition of the crystals was studied by Rutherford backscattering (RBS) measurements. Characterization studies such as dielectric, X-ray and electrical conductivity studies were performed for barium-doped KT. High-quality bulk KT:Ba crystals of size (4×3×3 cm3) weighing 20 g were grown.