Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA)-bismuth ferrite (BFO) nanocomposite: low loss and high dielectric constant materials with perceptible magnetic properties.

Herein, poly(methyl methacrylate)-bismuth ferrite (PMMA-BFO) nanocomposites were successfully prepared by an in situ polymerization method for the first time. Initially, the as prepared bismuth ferrite (BFO) nanoparticles were dispersed in the monomer, (methyl methacrylate) by sonication. Benzoyl peroxide was used to initiate the polymerization reaction in ethyl acetate medium. The nanocomposite films were subjected to X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), (1)H NMR, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), infrared spectroscopy (IR), dielectric and magnetic characterizations. The dielectric measurement of the nanocomposites was investigated at a frequency range of 10 Hz to 1 MHz. It was found that the nanocomposites not only showed a significantly increased value of the dielectric constant with an increase in the loading percentage of BFO as compared to pure PMMA, but also exhibited low dielectric loss values over a wide range of frequencies. The values of the dielectric constant and dielectric loss of the PMMA-BFO5 (5% BFO loading) sample at 1 kHz frequency was found be ~14 and 0.037. The variation of the ferromagnetic response of the nanocomposite was consistent with the varying volume percentage of the nanoparticles. The remnant magnetization (Mr) and saturation magnetization (Ms) values of the composites were found to be enhanced by increasing the loading percentage of BFO. The value of Ms for PMMA-BFO5 was found to be ~6 emu g(-1). The prima facie observations suggest that the nanocomposite is a potential candidate for application in high dielectric constant capacitors. Significantly, based on its magnetic properties the composite will also be useful for use in hard disk components.

[1]  R. Ramesh,et al.  Epitaxial BiFeO3 Multiferroic Thin Film Heterostructures , 2003, Science.

[2]  K. Yao,et al.  Dielectric behaviors and high energy storage density of nanocomposites with core-shell BaTiO3@TiO2 in poly(vinylidene fluoride-hexafluoropropylene). , 2013, Physical chemistry chemical physics : PCCP.

[3]  D. Das-gupta.  Ferroelectric polymers and ceramic-polymer composites , 1994 .

[4]  Wei Zheng,et al.  Highly sensitive and stable humidity nanosensors based on LiCl doped TiO2 electrospun nanofibers. , 2008, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[5]  R. Prud’homme,et al.  Ostwald Ripening ofβ-Carotene Nanoparticles , 2007 .

[6]  P. Kohl,et al.  Novel polymer–ceramic nanocomposite based on high dielectric constant epoxy formula for embedded capacitor application , 2002 .

[7]  Yi Yin,et al.  Giant Dielectric Permittivities in Functionalized Carbon-Nanotube/ Electroactive-Polymer Nanocomposites† , 2007 .

[8]  Andrew G. Glen,et al.  APPL , 2001 .

[9]  R. Choudhary,et al.  BiFeO3/poly(methyl methacrylate) nanocomposite films: A study on magnetic and dielectric properties , 2014 .

[10]  Haisheng Xu,et al.  High-dielectric-constant ceramic-powder polymer composites , 2000 .

[11]  Ching-Ping Wong,et al.  Synthesis and dielectric properties of novel high-K polymer composites containing in-situ formed silver nanoparticles for embedded capacitor applications , 2006 .

[12]  Lijie Dong,et al.  Enhancement of dielectric constant and piezoelectric coefficient of ceramic-polymer composites by interface chelation , 2009 .

[13]  Galileo Sarasqueta,et al.  Organic/inorganic nanocomposites for high-dielectric-constant materials , 2008 .

[14]  F. Brouers,et al.  Theory of ferroelectric polymer‐ceramic composites , 1990 .

[15]  Yuan Deng,et al.  Bi2S3–BaTiO3/PVDF three-phase composites with high dielectric permittivity , 2009 .

[16]  Takeshi Yamada,et al.  Piezoelectricity of a high‐content lead zirconate titanate/polymer composite , 1982 .

[17]  Z. Dang,et al.  Enhanced dielectric properties and positive temperature coefficient effect in the binary polymer composites with surface modified carbon black , 2008 .

[18]  G. G. Stokes.  "J." , 1890, The New Yale Book of Quotations.

[19]  Xingyi Huang,et al.  Core-shell structured poly(methyl methacrylate)/BaTiO3 nanocomposites prepared by in situ atom transfer radical polymerization: a route to high dielectric constant materials with the inherent low loss of the base polymer , 2011 .

[20]  Shengtao Li,et al.  Fabrication and dielectric properties of advanced high permittivity polyaniline/poly(vinylidene fluoride) nanohybrid films with high energy storage density , 2010 .

[21]  P. Khanna,et al.  In situ synthesis of silver nano-particles in polymethylmethacrylate , 2007 .

[22]  Yen‐Pei Fu,et al.  Microwave Shielding Characteristics of ${\hbox{PMMA/BiFeO}}_{3}$ Composites , 2011, IEEE Transactions on Magnetics.

[23]  Suppression of energy dissipation and enhancement of breakdown strength in ferroelectric polymer–graphene percolative composites , 2013 .

[24]  K. Moon,et al.  Silver/polymer nanocomposite as a high-kpolymer matrix for dielectric composites with improved dielectric performance , 2008 .

[25]  Lihua Zhu,et al.  Efficient removal of organic pollutants with magnetic Nanoscaled BiFeO(3) as a reusable heterogeneous fenton-like catalyst. , 2010, Environmental science & technology.

[26]  G. Psarras,et al.  Dielectric behaviour and functionality of polymer matrix - ceramic BaTiO3 composites , 2008 .

[27]  G. Exarhos,et al.  High‐Dielectric‐Constant Silver–Epoxy Composites as Embedded Dielectrics , 2005 .

[28]  Xingyi Huang,et al.  Influence of aluminum nanoparticle surface treatment on the electrical properties of polyethylene composites , 2009 .

[29]  H. D. Yang,et al.  Low loss high dielectric permittivity of polyvinylidene fluoride and KxTiyNi1−x−yO (x=0.05, y=0.02) composites , 2010 .

[30]  Xingyi Huang,et al.  Electrical, thermophysical and micromechanical properties of ethylene-vinyl acetate elastomer composites with surface modified BaTiO3 nanoparticles , 2009 .

[31]  D. Kwon,et al.  Supported metallocene catalysis for in situ synthesis of high energy density metal oxide nanocomposites. , 2007, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[32]  Lawrence F. Drummy,et al.  Assemblies of Titanium Dioxide-Polystyrene Hybrid Nanoparticles for Dielectric Applications , 2010 .

[33]  D. Das-gupta,et al.  Dielectric and pyroelectric properties of polymer/ceramic composites , 1988 .

[34]  Jian Yu,et al.  Enhancement of ferromagnetic properties in BiFeO3 polycrystalline ceramic by La doping , 2007 .

[35]  C. Kim,et al.  Electrochemical properties of carbon nanofiber web as an electrode for supercapacitor prepared by electrospinning , 2003 .

[36]  M. Santosh,et al.  Crystallinity, conductivity, and magnetic properties of PVDF-Fe3O4 composite films , 2011 .

[37]  Jianwen Xu,et al.  Low-loss percolative dielectric composite , 2005 .

[38]  D. K. Das-Gupta,et al.  Inorganic ceramic/polymer ferroelectric composite electrets , 1996 .

[39]  Yang Shen,et al.  Interfacial Effect on Dielectric Properties of Polymer Nanocomposites Filled with Core/Shell‐Structured Particles , 2007 .

[40]  G. Luther.  Dielectric dispersion of ferroelectric triglycine selenate in the microwave region , 1973 .

[41]  J. Cavaillé,et al.  Dielectric and piezoelectric properties of copolymer-ferroelectric composite , 1990 .

[42]  F. Xia,et al.  An all-organic composite actuator material with a high dielectric constant , 2002, Nature.

[43]  Pawan Kumar,et al.  Dielectric and Ferroelectric Properties of Ag Modified Lead Free 0.94[KNN]–0.06[LS] Ceramics , 2010 .

[44]  Yang Da-ben.  Composite piezoelectric film made from PVDF polymer and PCM-PZT ferroelectric ceramics , 1990 .

[45]  E. Longo,et al.  Lanthanum-doped Bi4Ti3O12 prepared by the soft chemical method: Rietveld analysis and piezoelectric properties , 2008 .

[46]  G. Schneider,et al.  Dielectric behaviour and conductivity of high-filled BaTiO3–PMMA composites and the facile route of emulsion polymerization in synthesizing the same , 2013 .

[47]  M. Reboredo,et al.  Dielectric and magnetic response of Fe3O4/epoxy composites , 2009 .

[48]  Ce-Wen Nan,et al.  Novel Ferroelectric Polymer Composites with High Dielectric Constants , 2003 .

[49]  Milind D. Arbatti,et al.  Ceramic–Polymer Composites with High Dielectric Constant , 2007 .

[50]  D. Kuo,et al.  Dielectric behaviours of multi-doped BaTiO3/epoxy composites , 2001 .

[51]  J. Zha,et al.  Functionalized graphene–BaTiO3/ferroelectric polymer nanodielectric composites with high permittivity, low dielectric loss, and low percolation threshold , 2013 .

[52]  J. Robertson,et al.  beta phase and gamma-beta metal-insulator transition in multiferroic BiFeO[sub 3] , 2008 .

[53]  Xingyi Huang,et al.  Ferroelectric polymer/silver nanocomposites with high dielectric constant and high thermal conductivity , 2009 .

[54]  J. Robertson,et al.  The beta Phase of Multiferroic Bismuth Ferrite and its beta-gamma Metal-Insulator Transition , 2007, 0705.2883.