Gigantic piezoelectricity in a polycrystalline ceramic actively maintained at a quadruple point.
basic_science · Level V
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- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 41610196.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1126/science.aec5660.
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Abstract
Transformative technologies demand polycrystalline piezoelectric ceramics with piezoelectric coefficients (<i>d</i><sub>33</sub>) exceeding 6000 picocoulomb per Newton (pC/N), but this goal has remained elusive because of the intrinsically weak nature of piezoelectricity and incomplete polarization alignment in polycrystals. We overcome this barrier by placing a polycrystalline lead zirconate titanate (PZT) ceramic in a temperature and electric-field control module so that it operates at a quadruple phase point (QP). This QP ceramic exhibited a <i>d</i><sub>33</sub> of ~6850 pC/N, which surpasses that of commercial PZT ceramics by 10 to 30 times and commercial lead magnesium niobate-lead titanate single crystals by ~4 times. This exceptional property arises from the tricritical nature of the QP, a thermodynamic singularity that produces an ultrasoft lattice and enables complete polarization alignment in polycrystals. The module maintained this performance for surrounding ambient temperature ranging from 25° to 350°C.