Dielectric and photoelectric properties of Pb(Mg1/3Ta2/3O3 crystals

The temperature dependence of the dielectric constant ɛ and the spectral dependence of the photoconductivity of Pb(Mg_1/3Ta_2/3)O₃ crystals are investigated. The width of the band gap (3.4 eV) is determined. It is found that above the temperature of the maximum of the dielectric constant, its reciprocal 1/ɛ varies with temperature first quadratically and then according to a linear law, as is characteristic of ferroelectrics with a smeared phase transition. The smearing parameter of the transition estimated from the experimental data is close to the value calculated assuming the absence of long-range order in the arrangement of the Mg and Ta ions. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 40, 109–110 (January 1998)