Journal of the American Ceramic Society, Vol.103, No.6, 3739-3747, 2020
Large electrostrain in low-temperature sintered NBT-BT-0.025FN incipient piezoceramics
It is well-known that the high sintering temperatures of (Na1/2Bi1/2)TiO3 (NBT)-based incipient piezoceramics limit their applications on low-cost multilayer piezoelectric actuators with base metal internal electrodes. In this work, a synergistic sintering additive of 0.75 wt% Li2CO3 and 0.75 wt% CuO was utilized to explore the effect on sintering behavior and electrostrain of (Na1/2Bi1/2)(0.935)Ba0.065Ti0.975(Fe1/2Nb1/2)(0.025)O-3 (NBT-BT-0.025FN) incipient piezoceramic. The optimal sintering temperature of NBT-BT-0.025FN decreased from 1160 degrees C to 940 degrees C due to the formation of a liquid phase, with limited degradation on electrostrain. When sintered at 940 degrees C, a large strain of 0.39% (a nominal piezocoefficient d33* of 571 pm/V) was achieved, which is promising for potential actuator applications co-firing with Ag electrodes.
Keywords:lead-free ceramics;low temperature;piezoelectric materials;properties;sinter;sintering;strain