Effects of CuO on the Preparation, Microstructure and Dielectric Response of CaCu3Ti4O12

CaCu3Ti4O12 (CCTO) barrier layer ceramic capacitor was prepared by a two-step sintering process. The CCTO powders were pre-synthesized at 900oC by solid-state reaction and the effects of the amount of CuO on the formation of the CCTO powders were investigated. The CCTO ceramics were prepared by the second-step sintering. It was found that the abnormal grain growth and inhomogeneous microstructure are controlled by the amount of excessive CuO. The optimized CuO content in the composites is ~14 wt%. The maximum permittivity is 115,000 (1 kHz, 210oC).