Structural transformation and pressure-induced phase transition in PZT

Angle-dispersive X-ray diffraction and Raman scattering measurements were carried out to follow the crystal-to-crystal transformation occurring in PbZr0.52Ti0.48O3 ceramic powders with either increasing hydrostatic pressure or decreasing temperature. A low-temperature monoclinic phase was confirmed to exist below 298 K. External pressures of several GPa were found to fundamentally alter the structural and polar properties of PZT near the MPB and novel phase transitions were found to occur at close to 5GPa at 298 K, 7.5 GPa at 154 K and 9 GPa at 44 K. Whereas X-ray diffraction data indicated no deviation from the cubic symmetry above these pressures at each given temperatures, the unusually strong and persistent Raman signals, similar to relaxor-specific spectral signatures, indicated the presence of symmetry-breaking disorder in this phase. Based on these results, an updated version of the Pressure-Temperature phase diagram is proposed.