Piezoelectric properties of 〈001〉 textured Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3–PbTiO3 ceramics

The piezoelectric properties of (1−x) Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3–xPbTiO3 (x=0.3–0.35), ceramics with a high degree of 〈001〉 fiber texture were investigated for possible actuator applications. Piezoelectric coefficients (d33) in excess of 1200 pC/N associated with strain levels up to >0.3% were observed in samples prepared by a reactive templated grain growth process. No excess PbO was used in the starting composition. A high degree of fiber texture was achieved using 〈001〉 oriented BaTiO3 template particles in a fine-grained precursor for the PMN–32PT matrix. High densities together with texture resulted in a significant increase in strain levels and d33 values compared to their polycrystalline counterparts. Peak dielectric constants on the order of 22 000 with losses of ∼2% and well-saturated hysteresis loops with a Pr∼27 μC/cm2 were recorded on the textured samples. These domain engineered, textured ceramics have tremendous potential for high-performance actuators.