Synthesizing Nanocrystalline Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)O3 Powders from Mixed Oxides

The attempt to synthesize a Pb(Zn 1/3 Nb 2/3 )O 3 (PZN) powder of perovskite structure via both traditional ceramic and chemistry‐based novel processing routes over the last three decades has failed. Difficult‐to‐synthesize nanocrystallite PZN powders have, for the first time, been successfully prepared via a mechanochemical reaction either among PbO, ZnO, and Nb 2 O 5 or between PbO and pre‐reacted ZnNb 2 O 6 from ZnO and Nb 2 O 5 for more than 15 h in a high‐energy mechanochemical reaction chamber. The resulting PZN powders exhibit a well‐established perovskite structure and their crystallite sizes are in the range of 10 to 15 nm, as has been indicated from the peak broadening of X‐ray diffraction and direct observation using a high‐resolution transmission electron microscope.