Relationship between BaTiO3 Nanowire Aspect Ratio and the Dielectric Permittivity of Nanocomposites

The aspect ratio of barium titanate (BaTiO3) nanowires is demonstrated to be successfully controlled by adjusting the temperature of the hydrothermal growth from 150 to 240 °C, corresponding to aspect ratios from 9.3 to 45.8, respectively. Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) nanocomposites are formed from the various aspect ratio nanowires and the relationship between the dielectric constant of the nanocomposite and the aspect ratio of the fillers is quantified. It was found that the dielectric constant of the nanocomposite increases with the aspect ratio of the nanowires. Nanocomposites with 30 vol % BaTiO3 nanowires and an aspect ratio of 45.8 can reach a dielectric constant of 44.3, which is 30.7% higher than samples with an aspect ratio of 9.3 and 352% larger than the polymer matrix. These results demonstrate that using high-aspect-ratio nanowires is an effective way to control and improve the dielectric performance of nanocomposites for future capacitor applications.