Liquid phase effect of La₂O₃ and V₂O₅ on microwave dielectric properties of Mg₂TiO₄ ceramics

Dielectric ceramics of Mg₂TiO₄ (MTO) were prepared by solid-state reaction method with 0.5–1.5 wt.% of La₂O₃ or V₂O₅ as sintering aid. The influences of La₂O₃ and V₂O₅ additives on the densification, microstructure and microwave dielectric properties of MTO ceramics were investigated. It is found that La₂O₃ and V₂O₅ additives lowered the sintering temperature of MTO ceramics to 1300 °C and 1250 °C respectively, whereas the pure MTO exhibits highest density at 1400 °C. The reduction in sintering temperature with these additives was attributed to the liquid phase effect. The average grain sizes of the MTO ceramics added with La₂O₃, and V₂O₅ found to decrease with an increase in wt%. The dielectric constant (ε_r) was not significantly changed, while unloaded Q values were affected with these additives, and the values were in the range of 92,000–157,550 GHz and 98,000–168,000 GHz with the addition of La₂O₃ and V₂O₅, respectively. The dielectric properties are strongly dependent on the densification and the microstructure of the MTO ceramics. The decrease in Q×f _o value at higher concentration of La₂O₃ and V₂O₅ addition was owing to inhomogeneous grain growth and the liquid phase which is segregated at the grain boundary. In comparison with pure MTO ceramics, La₂O₃ and V₂O₅ additives effectively improved the densification and dielectric properties with lowering of sintering temperature. The proposed loss mechanisms suggest that the oxygen vacancies and the average grain sizes are the influencing factors in the dielectric loss of MTO ceramics.