Co-doping of (Bi(0.5)Na(0.5))TiO(3): secondary phase formation and lattice site preference of Co

Bismuth sodium titanate (Bi(0.5)Na(0.5))TiO(3) (BNT) is considered to be one of the most promising lead-free alternatives to piezoelectric lead zirconate titanate (PZT). However, the effect of dopants on the material has so far received little attention from an atomic point of view. In this study we investigated the effects of cobalt-doping on the formation of additional phases and determined the preferred lattice site of cobalt in BNT. The latter was achieved by comparing the measured x-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) spectra to numerically calculated spectra of cobalt on various lattice sites in BNT. (Bi(0.5)Na(0.5))TiO(3) + x mol% Co (x = 0.0, 0.5, 1.0, 2.6) was synthesized via solid state reaction. As revealed by SEM backscattering images, a secondary phase formed in all doped specimens. Using both XRD and SEM-EDX, it was identified as Co(2)TiO(4) for dopant levels >0.5 mol%. In addition, a certain amount of cobalt was incorporated into BNT, as shown by electron probe microanalysis. This amount increased with increasing dopant levels, suggesting that an equilibrium forms together with the secondary phase. The XANES experiments revealed that cobalt occupies the octahedral B-site in the BNT perovskite lattice, substituting Ti and promoting the formation of oxygen vacancies in the material.