Abstract
Lead-free piezoceramics based on the (Ba, Ca)(Zr, Ti)O3 (BCZT) system exhibit excellent electromechanical properties for low-temperature actuation applications, but suffer from relatively high processing temperatures. Here we demonstrate an approach for the reduction of the sintering temperature and simultaneous increase of the electromechanical strain response of (Ba, Ca)(Zr, Ti)O3 piezoceramics by aliovalent doping with Ce. The samples were prepared by solid state synthesis and their crystallographic structure, dielectric, ferroelectric, and electromechanical properties were investigated. The highest d*33 value of 1189 pm/V was obtained for the sample with 0.05 mol% Ce, substituted on the A-site of the perovskite lattice. The results indicate a large potential of these materials for off-resonance piezoelectric actuators.
Highlights
Due to their outstanding electromechanical properties, Pb(ZrxTi1–x)O3 (PZT)-based ceramics were the most widely used piezoelectric materials in the past 60 years
The d*33 values reported for pure BCZT ceramics are 900‒1100 pm/V [6,8,13], which could be increased even further upon applying mechanical preloads [14]
We investigated the influence of Ce-doping on the sintering temperature, crystallographic structure, and large signal electromechanical behavior of BCZT ceramics
Summary
Due to their outstanding electromechanical properties, Pb(ZrxTi1–x)O3 (PZT)-based ceramics were the most widely used piezoelectric materials in the past 60 years. The most widely studied lead-free piezoceramics are based on the perovskite systems K0.5Na0.5NbO3 (KNN) [2], (Na1/2Bi1/2)TiO3 (NBT), BiFeO3 [3], and (Ba,Ca)(Zr,Ti)O3 (BCZT) [4,5]. BCZT compositions exhibit a large blocking force, exceeding that of PZT based piezoceramics [15] and good fatigue resistance, i.e., cycling stability [16,17]. These properties are of high importance for the use of piezoceramics in actuating applications [18]. BCZT was recently demonstrated to promote cell viability and DNA synthesis [19], making it a promising electroactive biomaterial [20]
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