Ba 8 ZnTa 6 O 24 : a high-Q microwave dielectric from a potentially diverse homologous series

The ceramic Ba8ZnTa6O24 has been synthesized in isolation and its dielectric and crystallographic properties characterized. The material affords excellent dielectric properties, with a high unloaded quality factor Qu=20 800 at 3.28 GHz, high relative permittivity εr=29 and a temperature coefficient of resonant frequency τf=29.4 ppm/°C. The crystal structure adopted is complex, comprising mixed cubic and hexagonal perovskite subunits, and contains cation vacancies on the octahedral sites. A second phase with a closely related structure is identified, demonstrating the existence of a family of materials. This structural complexity offers diverse opportunities for substitutions calculated to enhance the figures of merit reported.