Nano-sized Ag–BaTiO3 composite powders with various amount of Ag prepared by spray pyrolysis

The preparation of precursors of BaTiO3 nanopowders with various amounts of Ag by spray pyrolysis is reported. The precursor powders obtained with hollow and thin-wall particles are composed of uniformly dispersed Ba, Ti, and Ag components. After post-treatment and a simple milling process, the precursor powders, irrespective of the amount of Ag, are transformed into Ag–BaTiO3 composite nanoparticles. The mean particle size of the Ag (10 mol%)–BaTiO3 powders is 142 nm. BaTiO3 pellets containing Ag exhibit dense structures even at a low sintering temperature of 1000 °C. BaTiO3 pellets with 10 mol% Ag show the highest dielectric constant of 2950, as opposed to the pure BaTiO3 pellets (without Ag), whose dielectric constant is 1827.