Piezoelectric materials, which convert mechanical energy into electrical signals, are widely used in various industrial applications such as sensors, actuators, and energy harvesting devices. This study aims to enhance the performance of Pb(Mg_1/3Nb_2/3)O₃-Pb(Al_1/2Nb_1/2)O₃-Pb(Zr_0.52Ti_0.48)O₃ (PMN-PAN-PZT) piezoelectric ceramics by investigating the effects of varying PAN and PMN content and adding Nb₂O₅ on their piezoelectric properties. The results show that with 2 mol% of PMN and PAN, the morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) region exhibits the highest piezoelectric properties. Additionally, excess Nb₂O₅ positively influenced the piezoelectric properties, maximizing electro-mechanical coupling factor (k_p=63%, d₃₃=440 pC/N). These findings contribute to developing next-generation high-performance piezoelectric materials, with potential for improved efficiency and performance in various industries.

With the recent active development of laser-based weapons/monitoring/communication systems, there is a significant increase in the demand for improved performance of piezoelectric actuators, a key component of both deformable mirror (DM) and fast steering mirror (FSM) in the systems. The conventional polycrystalline piezoelectric ceramic actuators have limitations in improving their characteristics, so the ultrahigh strain PMN-PZT piezoelectric single crystal multilayer actuators have been developed. In this study, the basic experimental methods were developed to evaluate their stability as well as reliability. The limitations of deformation and applied voltage were confirmed through the breakdown voltage test, and the degree of stability was confirmed through the hammering test. In this study, the breakdown voltage test and the hammering test were confirmed to be effective methods to evaluate their stability as well as reliability. Through these studies, the next-generation PMN-PZT piezoelectric single-crystal multilayer actuator is expected to be applied to various piezoelectric application fields by securing reliability as well as excellent piezoelectric properties.

In this study, Pb(Ni_1/3Nb_2/3)O₃-Pb(Zr,Ti)O₃ ceramics substituted with Pb(Mg_1/2W_1/2)O₃ were fabricated with the variation of CuO for application to ultrasonic cleaning of removable orthodontic appliances (ROA). And their piezoelectric and dielectric properties were investigated. At the 0.12 wt% CuO added ceramics sintered at 930℃, the excellent values of dielectric constant=2,519, density=7.82 g/㎤, kp=0.64, d₃₃=536 pC/N, Qm=57 were obtained, respectively. These values were suitable for application to ultrasonic cleaning of ROA.

Recently, piezoelectric devices, such as ultrasonic surgery, ultrasonic atomizer, and ultrasonic speaker, are analyzed and designed by finite element simulation methods. However, the discrepancy between the design and the experiment results of the device typically occurs due to the inaccuracy of the piezoelectric material properties. To improve the simulation accuracy, the material properties of the PZT ceramics were better refined using parameter estimation method. The material parameters are elastic stiffness c^E_ij and piezoelectric constant e_ij of PZT ceramics. The impedance curve characteristics for the LTE mode of PZT ceramics were calculated. The mismatch between the simulation and the experimental data were compared and minimized by a least square method. Finally, the simulated impedance data were compared with the experimental data for the various vibration modes of PZT ceramics and the optimized material properties of PZT ceramics were verified. To further verify the accuracy, this method was also applied to piezoelectric PMN-PT single crystals.

Ultrasonic sensor is suitable as a next-generation autonomous driving assist device because its lower price compared to that of other sensors and its sensing stability in the external environment. Although Pb(Zr, Ti)O₃ (PZT)-relaxor ferroelectric system has excellent piezoelectric properties, the change in capacitance is large in the daily operating temperature range due to the low phase transition temperature. Recently, many studies have been conducted to improve the temperature stability of ferroelectric ceramics by controlling the grain size and crystal structure, so it is necessary to study the effect of the grain size on the piezoelectric properties and the temperature stability of PZT-relaxor ferroelectric system. In this study, the piezoelectric properties, phase transition temperature, and temperature coefficient of capacitance (TCC) of 0.9 Pb(Zr_1-xTi_x)O₃-0.1 Pb(Zn_1/3Nb_2/3)O₃ (PZT_x-PZN) ceramics with various grain sizes were investigated. PZT_x-PZN ceramics with larger grain size showed higher piezoelectric properties and temperature stability, and are expected to be suitable for ultrasonic devices in the future.

Pb(Sb_0.5Nb_0.5)x(Zr_0.51Ti_0.49)_1-xO₃ (abbreviation: PSN-PZT) ceramics were synthesized, using conventional bulk ceramic processing technology, with various PSN doping contents. The maximum density of PSN-PZT was 97% of the theoretical density in the samples sintered at 1,250℃. The maximum values of the piezoelectric properties achieved using the conventional processes were: k_p of 0.625, d₃₃ of 531 pC/N, and g₃₃ of 33 mV·m/N. Finally, we fabricated a piezo-speaker with the optimized PSN-PZT ceramics. The SPL of the speaker was measured at a distance of 1 m, with a driving voltage of 40 V_rms in the frequency range of ~300 Hz to 9 kHz. The measured SPL_max was at a very high level (95 dB), which was superior in quality in comparison with those of other commercial products.

Ferroelectric material properties are strongly governed by domain structures and their evolution processes, but the evolution processes of complex domain patterns during a macroscopic electrical poling process are still elusive. In the present work, domain-evolution processes in a PZT ceramic near the morphotropic phase-boundary composition were studied during a step-wise electrical poling using piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM). Electron backscatter diffraction was used with the PFM data to identify the grain boundaries in the region of interest. In response to an externally the applied electric field, growth and retreat of non-180° domain boundaries wasere observed. The results indicate that ferroelectric polarization-switching nucleates and evolves in concordance with the pattern of the pre-existing domains.

The piezoelectric properties of 0.65Pb(Zr_1-xTi_x)O₃-0.35Pb(Zn_1/6Ni_1/6Nb_2/3)O₃ (PZT_x-PZNN) ceramics with 0.530≤ x≤0.555 were investigated for application to piezoelectric energy harvesters. Although a morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) was found at approximately x＝0.545, the ceramic with the highest figure of merit (FOM) (d₃₃×g₃₃) was observed at a composition of x＝0.540. Values of this figure of merit, d₃₃×g₃₃, of 19.6 pm²/N and 20.2 pm²/N were obtained from PZT_0.540-PZNN ceramics sintered at 920℃ and 950℃, respectively. A high output power of 937 μW and a high power density of 3.3 mW/cm³ were obtained from unimorph-type piezoelectric energy harvesters fabricated using PZT_0.540-PZNN ceramic sintered at 920℃ for 4h.

Lead zirconate titanate/poly-vinylidene fluoride (PZT/PVDF) piezoelectric devices were fabricated by incorporating carbon nanotubes (CNTs), for use as flexible energy harvesting devices. CNTs were added to maximize the formation of the β phase of PVDF to enhance the piezoelectricity of the devices. The phase transition of PVDF induced by the addition of CNTs was confirmed by analyzing the X-ray diffraction patterns, scanning electron microscopy images, and atomic force microscopy images. The enhanced output efficiency of the PZT/PVDF piezoelectric devices was confirmed by measuring the output current and voltage of the fabricated devices. The maximum output current and voltage of the PZT/PVDF piezoelectric devices was 200 nA and 350 mV, respectively, upon incorporation of 0.06 wt% CNTs.

In a Pb-included piezoelectric composition, Sr_yPb_1-y[(Zn_1/3Nb_2/3)_x-(Ni_1/3Nb_2/3)_0.2-(Zr_0.46Ti_0.54)_0.8-x]O₃ was selected in order to attain high piezoelectric properties. According to the PZN ratio (x) and the amount of Sr doping (y), the crystal structure, microstructure and piezoelectric properties were measured and evaluated. In the case of Sr 4 mol% doping, the piezoelectric properties were the highest for a PZN ratio of 0.1. In this condition, the grain size was larger and the intensity was higher. With the PZN ratio fixed and varying the Sr doping, the piezoelectric properties increased until 10 mol% doping and then decreased for over 12 mol% doping. In the case of x＝0.1 and y＝10 mol%, the best piezoelectric properties were obtained, i.e., d₃₃＝660 pC/N and k_p＝68.5%, and these values seem to be related to the grain size and crystal structure.

Pb(Zr, Ti)O₃ (PZT) is a piezoelectric material applied in a typical actuator and has been actively studied. However, in order to overcome the limitations of PZT, piezoelectric ceramics comprising mixed solid solutions of PZT with various relaxer electric materials have been studied. The Pb(Zn_1/3Nb_2/3)-Pb(Ni_1/3Nb_2/3)-Pb(Zr, Ti)O₃ (PZN-PNN-PZT) piezoelectric ceramic, known to have high piezoelectric constant and electromechanical coupling coefficient, was studied herein. The piezoelectric characteristics with various Zr contents (Zr/Ti ratios), PZN molar ratios, and sintering temperatures were compared. The piezoelectric properties of d₃₃＝580 pC/N and kP＝0.68 were obtained with the 0.1PZN-0.2PNN-0.7PbZr_0.46Ti_0.54O₃ composition sintered at 1,290℃.

Pb(Zr_0.52Ti_0.48)O₃ (PZT) films with a thickness of 5~10 μm at the morphotropic phase boundary were fabricated by aerosol-deposition (AD), and their phase evolution and electrical properties were investigated. The microstructure of the AD PZT films revealed nanosized grains with a low crystallinity and a dense structure at room temperature. The AD PZT films showed a mixture of tetragonal and rhombohedral phases. The post-annealing temperature was varied to study the phase transition behavior. The crystallinity of the AD PZT films was enhanced by annealing at 450, 550, and 650℃ for 2 h. At 650℃, the tetragonal and rhombohedral phases reacted to form a bridge phase between the two phases. The polarization-electric field hysteresis loops of the AD PZT film annealed at 650℃ exhibited a smaller cohesive field and a lower slim hysteresis than the films annealed at 450 and 550℃.

Pb(Mn_1/3Nb_2/3)_0.07(Ni_1/3Nb_2/3)_0.10(Zr_0.5Ti_0.5)_0.83O₃ composition ceramics with high piezoelectric properties were fabricated by the columbite precursor method for ultrasonic generators, and the effects of sintering temperature on microstructure and piezoelectric properties were systematically investigated. It was found that the tetragonality of the ceramics decreased with increase in sintering temperature. Moreover, excellent physical properties such as d₃₃=447 pC/N, ε_r=1,843, k_p=0.641, and Q_m=1,207 were obtained for an ultrasonic generator when the second calcination temperature and sintering temperature were 720℃ and 920℃, respectively.

A unimorph piezoelectric cantilever generator with an interdigitated electrode (IDE) was developed for vibration energy harvester applications driven in the longitudinal mode. Hard lead zirconate titanate (PZT) ceramic with a high Q_m of 1,280 was used as the piezoelectric active material. Ten PZT sheets produced by tape casting were laminated and co-fired with an Ag/Pd IDE at 1,050℃ for 2 h. The approximately 280 μm-thick co-fired PZT laminate with the IDE was attached to a stainless steel substrate with an adhesive epoxy for the fabrication of an IDE unimorph cantilever. Its energy harvesting characteristics were evaluated: an output power of 1.1 μW at 120 Hz across the resistive load of 700 k□ was obtained, corresponding to a normalized power factor of 4.1 μW/(G²·cm³).

The electrocaloric effect in 0.94(Bi_0.5Na_0.5)TiO₃+0.06KNbO3+0.9 wt% G.F.ferroelectricceramics was observed in terms of the temperature change (ΔT) of the fabricated ceramics, Curie temperature Tc, and applied electric field. The specimens were fabricated by a conventional solid-state reaction. T_c appeared near 165∼170℃. The P-E hysteresis showed a tendency to slim down with a temperature increase and finally was slimmest near 150℃. With the increase of temperature, the polarization revealed a gradual decrease, and a sharp decline near T_c. When an electric field of 45 kV/cm was applied, the largest polarization was shown. The maximum value of the temperature change (ΔT=0.31℃) was obtained at 165℃ under an applied electric field of 45 kV/cm.

In this paper, Pb(Mn_1/3Nb_2/3)_0.07(Ni_1/3Nb_2/3)_0.10(Zr_0.5Ti_0.5)_0.83O₃ ceramics were fabricated by the conventional solid state method to obtain excellent dielectric properties for ultrasonic generators. The effects of 2nd calcination temperature on their microstructure and piezoelectric properties were systematically investigated. The tetragonality increased in the ceramics when 2nd calcination temperature increased to the optimized temperature at 750℃. At that temperature, excellent physical properties (d₃₃= 352 pC/N, ε_r= 1,687, k_p= 0.570, Q_m= 1,640) were obtained for ultrasonic generator application.

Piezoelectric thick films of soft Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 (PZT) based commercial material (S55) were fabricated using a conventional tape casting method. Ag-Pd electrodes were printed on the piezoelectric film at room temperature and all 5 layered films with a dimension of 12 ㎜× 16 ㎜were successfully laminated for a multi-layered piezoelectric ceramic actuator. The laminated specimens were co-fired at 1,100℃ for 1 h. A flat layered and dense microstructure was obtained for the 112 ㎛thick piezoelectric actuator after sintering process. Thereafter, a prototype piezoelectric speaker was fabricated using the multi-layered piezoelectric ceramic actuator which can operate as a bimorph. Its SPL (sound pressure level) characteristic was also evaluated for speaker application. Frequency response revealed that the output SPL with a root mean square voltage of 10 V increased gradually to the highest peak of 87.5 dB for 1.5 kHz and exhibited a relatively stable behavior over the measured frequency range (≤20 kHz) at a distance of 10 cm, implying that the fabricated piezoelectric speaker is potential for speaker applications.

In this study, in order to develop composition ceramics for Acoustic Emission (abbreviated as AE) sensor application, the PZT system ceramics was fabricated by conventional solid state reaction method. When x=0.48, the density, electromechanical coupling factor(kp), piezoelectric coefficient d₃₃ and piezoelectric voltage constant g₃₃ of the maximum values of 7.857 g/cm₃, 0.51, 190[pC/N], 52[10-₃mV/N] were obtained, respectively, suitable for AE sensor.

Ultrasound imaging by using piezoelectric materials, such as lead zirconium titanate (PZT) has been oneof the most preferred modes of imaging in the medical field due to its simple, low cost and non-ionizing radiation in comparison to other imaging techniques. Recently, the market demand for portable ultrasound is becoming larger with applications in developing countries, disaster area, military, and emergency purposes. However, most of ultrasound probes used is bulky and high power consumable, so unsuitable for such applications. In this study, the 3 layered ceramic specimen consisted of 128 pitches of 420 μm in width and 450 μm in thickness were prepared by using the Ti-rich PZT compositions co-fired at 1,050℃. Their electrical and ultrasound pulse-echo properties were investigated and compared to the single layer specimen. The 3 layered ultrasound probe showed 1.584 V of Vp-p, which is 3.2 times higher than single layered one, implying that it would allow effectively such a portable ultrasound probe system. The result were discussed in terms of higher capacitance, lower impedance and higher dielectric coefficient of the 3 layered ultrasound probe.

In this study, in order to develop the composition ceramics for ultrasonic sensor with high d33*g33, (Pb1-3x/2Bix(Mg1/2W1/2)0.03(Ni1/3Nb2/3)0.09(Zr0.5Ti0.5)0.88O3)(PMW-PNN-PZT) system ceramics were prepared using CuO as sintering aids. And then, their microstructure, piezoelectric and dielectric characteristics were systemetically investigated with bismuth substitution. The PMW-PNN-PZT ceramic specimens could be sintered at sintering temperature of 940℃ by adding sintering aids. At x=0.015 specimen, the density, electromechanical coupling factor(kp), dielectric constant, piezoelectric constant(d33) and piezoelectric figure of merit(d33*g33) indicated the optimal properties of 7.90 g/cm3, 0.67, 2,511, 628 pC/N, and 17.7 pm2/N, respectively, for duplex ultrasonic sensor application.

In this work, [Pb(Mg1/2W1/2)0.03(Ni1/3Nb2/3)x(Zr0.5Ti0.5)0.97-xO3-BiFeO3] (x=0.02 to 0.12) composition ceramics were fabricated by the conventional soild state reaction method and their microstructure and piezoelectric properties were investigated according to PNN substitution. The addition of small amount of BiFeO3, Li2CO3, and CaCO3 were used in order to decrease the sintering temperature of the ceramics. The XRD (x-ray diffraction patterns) of all ceramics exhibited a perovskite structure. The sinterability of PMW-PNN-PZT-BF ceramics was remarkably improved using liquid phase sintering of CaCO3, Li2CO3. However, it was identified from of the X-ray diffraction patterns that the secondary phase formed in grain boundaries decreased the piezoelectric properties. According to the substitution of PNN, the crystal structure of ceramics is transformed gradually from a tetragonal to rhombohedral phase. The x=0.10 mol PNN-substituted PMW-PNN-PZT-BF ceramics sintered at 920 showed the optimum values of piezoelectric constant(d33), piezoelectric figure of merit(d33·g33), planar piezoelectric coupling coefficient(kp) and density : d33=566 [pC/N], g33=29.28 [10-3mV/N], d33·g33=16.57 [pm2/N], kp=0.61, density=7.82 [g/cm3], suitable forduplex ultrasonic sensor application.

In this paper, in order to develop the composition ceramics with the outstanding piezoelectric properties, (Mg_{1/2} W _{1/2} )_{0.03} (OWNS_{1/3} Nb_{2/3})_{0.09} (Zr_{0.5} Ti_{0.5})_{0.88} O_{3} ceramics substituted with BiFeO_{3} were prepared by the conventional solid-state reaction method. The addition of small amount of Li2CO_{3} and CaCO_{3} as sintering aids decreased the sintering temperature of the ceramics. The effects of BiFeO3 substitution on their piezoelectric and dielectric properties were investigated. when 0.015 mol BiFeO_{3} was substituted, the optimal physical properties of d33=590 pC/N, Ec=8.78 kV/mm were obtained.

In this study, (1-x)Pb(Mg1/2W1/2)0.03(Ni1/3Nb2/3)0.09(Zr0.5Ti0.5)0.88O3 + xCeMnO3 (x= 0∼0.02) ceramics were prepared by Columbite precursor method. The phase structure, ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties were systematically investigated. It was found that PMW-PNN-PZT possessed superior electrical properties due to its composition close to the MPB (morphotropic phase boundary). Coercive electric field of 10.05 [kV/cm] and density of 7.88 [g/cm3] were obtained when the substitution amount of CeMnO3 is x=0.02. In contrast, specimens with x=0.01 showed the mechanical quality factor(Qm) of 1,091 and the electromechanical coupling factor(kp) of 0.613.

In this paper, in order to develop the composition ceramics with the excellent dielectric properties, Pb(Mg1/2W1/2)0.03(Ni1/3Nb2/3)0.09(Zr0.5Ti0.5)0.88O3 ceramics were fabricated by the conventional solid-state method. The effects of ZnO addition on their microstructure and piezoelectric properties were systematically investigated. The rhombohedral-tetragonal phase coexistence has been found in the ceramics without ZnO content and then with further increasing ZnO content, specimens exhibited tetragonal phase. The optimized ZnO content formed liquid phase and aided the grain growth of specimens. When 0.4 wt% ZnO was added, the optimal physical properties (d33= 422pC/N, d31= 161 pC/N, εr= 1,905, kp= 0.55, Qm= 160) were obtained.

In this study, we fabricated a micro Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 (PZT) film piezoelectric cantilever with a Si proof mass and dual beams through MEMS process. The size of the beam and the integrated Si proof mass were about 4,320 μm × 290 μm × 12 μm and 1,380 μm × 880 μm × 450 μm each. To reduce the air damping and have the larger displacement of dual beams was used for design. After mounting micro PZT film piezoelectric cantilever on shaker, we measured the resonance frequency and a output voltage while making resonant frequency changed. The resonant frequency and the highest average power of the cantilever device were 110.2 Hz and 0.36 μW each, at 0.8 g acceleration and 23.7 kΩ load resistance,respectively.

In this study, coupled mode piezoelectric devices for AE sensor application with excellent displacement and piezoelectric characteristics were simulated using ATILA FEM program, and then fabricated. Displacements and electromechanical coupling factors of the piezoelectric devices were investigated. The simulation results showed that excellent displacement and electromechanical coupling factor were obtained when the ratio of diameter/thickness was 1.0. The piezoelectric device of ф/T= 1.0 exhibited the optimum values of fr= 406 kHz, displacement= 6.11 × 10^-8[m], k_eff= 0.648. The results show that the coupled vibration mode piezoelectric device is a promising candidate for the application of AE sensor piezoelectric device.

A new water energy harvester module, which is composed of piezoelectric bimorph cantilevers, harvesting circuit and a shaft with 16 impellers at a center axis, was fabricated for energy harvesting application. High energy density Pb(Zr0.54Ti0.46)O3 + 0.2 wt% Cr2O3 + 1.0 wt% Nb2O5 (PZT-CN) thick film obtained by tape casting method was used for the bimorph cantilever. The PZT-CN bimorph cantilever with a proof mass of 49 g exhibited extremely high output power of 22.5 mW (24 mW//cm3) at resonance frequency of 11 Hz. In addition, the fabricated water energy harvester has a cylindrical structure with 48 bimorph cantilevers clamped at inner surface. A significantly high output power of 433 mW was obtained at a rotation speed of 120 rpm with a resistive load of 500 Ω for the water energy harvester.

We fabricated piezoelectric unimorph cantilever generators (UCG) using Pb(Zr0.54Ti0.46)O3 + 0.2 wt% Cr2O3 + 1.0 wt% Nb2O5 (PZCN) piezoelectric thick films, which were produced by a tape casting method. The PZCN thick films were tailored with same width and thickness but different lengths from 7.7 to 57.7 mm in order to evaluate optimized UCG for energy harvesting device applications. When the length of PZCN film was increased, the resonance frequency of UCG was slightly increased from 7 Hz to 8 Hz, which could be due to enlarged area of the highly stiff piezo-ceramic film. However, the output power was proportionally increased with the length of PZCT film and it reached 4.68 mW (1.221 mW/cm3) when the film`s length was 57.7 mm under 25 g of tip mass at 8 Hz, which is sufficient for micro-scale device applications.

Spring supported piezoelectric cantilever structures (SPCS) were fabricated for vibration-based energy harvester application. We selected four elastic springs (A, B, C, and D type) as cantilever`s supporter, each elastic spring has a different spring constant (S). The C type of SPCS (SC: 4,649 N/m) showed a extremely low resonance frequency of 81 Hz along with the highest power output of 38.5 mW while the A type of SPCS (SA: 40,629 N/m) didn`t show a resonance frequency while. Therefore, it is considered that the lower spring constant lead to a lower resonance frequency of the SPCS. In addition, a tip mass (18 g) at one end of the SPCS could further reduce the resonance frequency without heavy degradation of power output.

Multiferroic BFO/PZT(5/95) multilayer films were fabricated by spin-coating method on the Pt/Ti/SiO2/Si substrate alternately using BFO and PZT(9/95) alkoxide solutions. The structural and dielectric properties were investigated with variation of the solvent and the number of coatings. All films showed the typical XRD patterns of the perovskite polycrystalline structure without presence of the second phase such as Bi2Fe4O3. BFO/PZT multilayer thin films showed the typical dielectric relaxation properties with increase an applied frequency. The average thickness of 6-coated BFO/PZT multilayer film was about 600 nm. The dielectric properties such as dielectric constant, dielectric loss and remnant polarization were superior to those of single composition BFO film, and those values for BFO/PZT multilayer film were 1199, 0.23% and 12 μC/cm2.