Phase formation and microstructure of PbTiO3 and CaTiO3 ceramics prepared by a direct current arc discharge technique

PbTiO3 and CaTiO3 ceramics are prepared at temperatures above 2000°C by a direct current arc discharge technique under an argon atmosphere, and the microstructure, components and morphology of each material are investigated. Both samples show the formation of a perovskite structure. Moreover, a tetragonal phase is found in the PbTiO3 ceramic material, and a cubical phase is formed in the CaTiO3 ceramic material. In this work, PbTiO3 and CaTiO3 ceramics were rapidly prepared using a simple DC arc discharge technique; we found this technique of ceramic material synthesis was much faster and better than conventional methods. The whole reaction process only takes 30 seconds because of ultrafast kinetics of crystallization.