Analysis of a hollow piezoelectric semiconductor composite cylinder under a thermal loading

Abstract

Piezoelectric semiconductors (PSs) are the most promising building blocks for multifunctional electronic devices due to the polarization field resulting from piezoelectricity and pyroelectricity. In this article, we investigate the electromechanical coupling behaviors of a hollow PS composite (HPSC) cylinder under a uniform temperate change. The HPSC cylinder is consist of an outer thin PS layer and an inner elastic layer. Taking the interactions of thermoelasticity, piezoelectricity, and pyroelectricity into account, we develop one-dimensional equations for the HPSC cylinder with axisymmetric deformation, and present analytical solutions of the physical fields in the HPSC cylinder with perfect and imperfect interfaces for different boundary conditions. For the static equilibrium equation of the PS layer, the approximate relationship between the electric field and the average electric field is employed. The effects of geometrical parameters and imperfect interface, as well as the tuning effect of thermal loadings, on the multifield coupling responses and piezotronic effects of the HPSC cylinder are discussed in detail. The numerical results show that the physical fields are sensitive to the thermal loading, and the geometrical parameters, boundary conditions, and the interface bonding condition play an important role in the design of PS devices.