Lead Zirconate Titanate/Modified Nickel Ferrite Magnetoelectric Composites Prepared from Submicron Precursors

We have studied the effects of the preparation procedure, connectivity pattern, and weight ratio of components on the phase composition and properties of particulate PZT–Ni0.9Co0.1Cu0.1Fe1.9O4 – δ magnetoelectric (ME) composites (where PZT stands for piezoelectric materials based on lead zirconate titanate of various industrial grades). The ME ceramics contain no foreign phases, but the use of fine piezoelectric powders leads to one-way doping of the piezoelectric with components of the ferrite. If macrocrystalline PZT is used, undesirable doping processes occur only on interfaces. The 0–3 connectivity composites with equal weight percentages of phases based on soft piezoelectric materials have improved piezoelectric parameters and high ME coupling efficiency (ΔE/ΔH = 110–140 mV/(cm Oe)), which exceeds that of the composites with the other connectivity patterns by at least a factor of 1.5. The use of hard piezoelectrics instead of the soft ones reduces ΔE/ΔH coefficients by a factor of 3 or more.