Dysprosium doped dielectric materials for sintering in reducing atmospheres

Substitution of Dy rare earth ions was studied in Ba(Ti,Zr)O-3 dielectric m aterials, using thermogravimetry, X-ray diffraction and dielectric measurem ents. Dy3+ ions enter both the A- and the B-sites of the perovskite structu re, however, the solubility on B-sites is up to 9 mol %, whereas it is only 2.5 mol% on A-sites. Dy can be easily shifted from A- to B-sites and back, using Ba or Ti excess in the material. Dy3+ on B-sites is a strong electro n acceptor. Dy doped dielectric materials are cofired with Ni electrodes in reducing atmosphere to highly insulating BME multilayer capacitors.