Negative correlation between electrical response and domain size in a Ti-composition-gradient Pb[(MgNb)Ti]O crystal near the morphotropic phase boundary

Shimizu, Daisuke*; Tsukada, Shinya*; Matsuura, Masato*; Sakamoto, Junya*; Kojima, Seiji*; Namikawa, Kazumichi*; Mizuki, Junichiro; Owada, Kenji

The phase diagram and the relationship between the crystal coherence length and electrical response of Pb[(MgNb)Ti]O (PMN-xPT) near the morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) have been precisely investigated using a single crystal with a Ti composition gradient by synchrotron X-ray diffraction and inelastic light scattering at room temperature. The crystal has two boundaries at Ti compositions of 29.0 mol% and 34.7 mol% which correspond to the phase boundaries between the monoclinic B (MB) and C (MC) phases and between the MC and tetragonal (T) phases, respectively. It is shown that there is a strong negative correlation between the electrical response and the crystal coherence length at the sub-m scale. The results are explained by the size effects of domains near the MPB.