Effect of sintering temperature on the electrical property and microstructure of Zn0.9Bi0.02Mn0.02Cr0.02Al0.04O varistor
Abstract
The effect of different sintering temperatures ranging from 800°C to 1100°C on the electrical and microstructure of Zn0.9Bi0.02Mn0.02Cr0.02Al0.04O varistor was investigated. From the results, the grain size of the varistor increased from 38.8 μm to 185.2 μm for increasing temperature. On the other hand, the amounts of dopants in the varistor remained constant after sintering except for aluminum. In relation to the nonlinearity coefficient, α, varistors sintered up to 1025°C has an increasing nonlinearity coefficient. The highest value of α is 6.600, which is obtained from the varistor sintered at 1025°C. Beyond that, the value α decreased. Results showed that sintering temperature affects the grain size, amount of dopants and the nonlinearity coefficient. The value of nonlinearity coefficient and grain size increases for increasing sintering temperature. However at higher temperature the value of α decreases because of the loss of other dopants that evaporates at higher temperature.