Effect of the zr-substitution on the structural and electrical properties of LaFeO₃: XRD, raman scattering, SEM, and impedance spectroscopy study

The LaFe_1−xZr_xO₃ (x = 0.01, 0.05) ceramics were prepared by sol-gel and annealing method and studied by XRD, Raman scattering analysis, SEM, and impedance spectroscopy method. The crystal structure and phonon characteristics analysis revealed that the crystal structure tends to preserve its ideal orthorhombic structure, following the increase in driving force of the Fe/ZrO₆ octahedral tilting. The frequency-dependent dielectric parameters at each temperature decreased with increasing Zr content. The temperature dependence dielectric relaxation and dc conduction mechanism satisfied the Arrhenius law and increased with increasing Zr content. The activation energy ranged from 0.30 to 0.50 eV and was similar in the relaxation and conduction mechanisms, indicating that both transport mechanisms were based on a similar mechanism.