Synthesis and band-gap tuning of (Co, Bi) doped PbTiO₃ for photoferroelectrics applications

Abstract

In this study, We demonstrate the development of 0.40Bi (Co_yTi_1-y)O₃–0.60PbTiO₃ (BCT-60PT) ferroelectric samples using the conventional solid-state reaction technique . Phase identification and structural characterization of BCT-60PT powders were made by X-Ray diffraction technique. Significant effect of Co concentration on the structural and optical properties of the BCT-60PT has been observed. We have investigated the variation of the band gap with calcination temperature. The band gap tuning is done by varying the doping percentage of Co (y = 0.45, 0.5, 0.55, 0.60) in 0.40Bi (Co_yTi_1-y) O₃–0.60PbTiO_3. The optical band gap is found to reduce from 2.84 eV to 1.65 eV as the Co concentration increases in BCT-60PT. The reduced band gap makes the (1 -x)Bi(Co_1/2Ti_1/2)O₃–xPbTiO₃ promising multiferroic material for photoferrovoltaics applications.

Keywords:

• X-ray diffraction
• perovskite
• photovoltaic
• ferro-electric