The Aurivillius type bismuth layer-structured compound potassium lanthanum bismuth titanate (K0.5La0.5Bi4Ti4O15) is synthesized using conventional solid-state processing. The phase analysis is performed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and the microstructural morphology is conducted by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The ferroelectric, dielectric and piezoelectric properties of K0.5La0.5Bi4Ti4O15 (KLBT) ceramics are investigated in detail. The remnant polarization (P-r) and coercive field (E-c) are found to be 8.6 mu C cm(-2) and 60 kV cm(-1), respectively. The Curie temperature T-c and piezoelectric coefficient d(33) are 413 degrees C and 18 pCN(-1), respectively. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.