Structural, Thermal and Electrical properties of Poly(methyl methacrylate)-CaCu3Ti4O12 composite sheets fabricated via melt mixing

Abstract: Poly(Methyl Methacrylate) (PMMA) and CaCu3Ti4O12 (CCTO) composites were fabricated via melt mixing followed by hot pressing technique. These were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermo gravimetric (TGA), Thermo Mechanical (TMA), Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), and Impedance analyser for their structural, thermal and dielectric properties. Composites were found to have better thermal stability than that of pure PMMA. However, there was no significant difference in the glass transition (Tg) temperature between the polymer and the composite. The appearance of additional vibrational frequencies in the range 400-600 cm-1 in FTIR spectra indicated a possible interaction between PMMA and CCTO. The composite, with 38 Vol % of CCTO (in PMMA), exhibited remarkably low dielectric loss at high frequencies and the low frequency relaxation is attributed to the space charge polarization/MWS effect. The origin of AC conductivity particularly in the high frequency region was attributed to the electronic polarization.