Application of mechanical activation in synthesizing multiferroic Pb(Fe1/2Nb1/2)O3 powders

Abstract

In the study, the method of high-energy powder milling – mechanical activation (MA) was used for synthesizing Pb(Fe1/2Nb1/2)O3 (PFN) powders. For the purpose of comparing the influence of high-energy milling on PFN synthesis, two groups of powder samples were used. The first mixture consisting of simple oxide powders; the second one consisting of compound oxide powders. The obtained powders were subjected to structural analysis with the use of XRD and Mossbauer spectroscopy. Tests revealed that during the process of high-energy milling of initial constituents a partial synthesis of PFN material phases occurs. By comparing the two methods of PFN synthesizing it may be stated that mechanical activation in the case of a simple oxide mixture (PFN1) is equally effective as for a compound oxide mixture (PFN2).