Giant Negative Electrocaloric Effect in (Pb,La)(Zr,Sn,Ti)O3 Antiferroelectrics Near Room Temperature

(Pb 0.97 La 0.02 )(Zr x Sn 0.94– x Ti 0.06 )O 3 (PLZST) antiferroelectric ceramics with x = 0.75–0.90 have been fabricated and found to be a novel electrocaloric material system with a giant negative electrocaloric effect (Δ T = −11.5 K) and a large electrocaloric strength (|Δ T /Δ E | = 0.105 K cm kV –1 ) near room temperature. Additionally, the PLZST antiferroelectric ceramic also exhibits a large positive electrocaloric effect around the Curie temperature. The giant negative effect and the coexistence of both positive and negative electrocaloric effects in one material indicate a promising possibility to develop mid- to large-scale solid-state cooling devices with high efficiency.