Achieving combinatory “soft” and “hard” piezoelectric properties in textured ceramics via exploring single-crystal-like electrostriction

Design of a projecting-receiving dual-purpose transducer is challenging due to the difficulty of synthesizing piezoelectric materials with combinatory “soft” properties (high piezoelectric coefficient d) and “hard” properties (low dielectric loss and high mechanical quality factor Q_m). In this study, we provide a different perspective to address this challenge via exploiting single-crystal-like electrostriction coefficient Q₃₃ through the fabrication of grain oriented or textured “hard” piezoelectric ceramics. Mn-doped 0.27Pb(In_1/2Nb_1/2)O₃–0.41Pb(Mg_1/3Nb_2/3)O₃–0.32PbTiO₃ (Mn:PIN–PMN–PT) piezoelectric ceramics with a high [0 0 1]_c texture fraction of 99% were synthesized, which exhibit three times greater piezoelectric properties (d₃₃ ∼ 828 pC/N) than random counterparts (d₃₃ ∼ 251 pC/N), while maintaining low loss (tan δ ∼ 0.5%, Q_m = 443). According to the formula (Formula presented.), the large improvement of d₃₃ in textured ceramics is mainly due to a doubling increase in dielectric constant ε₃₃ and Q₃₃ (∼0.057 m⁴/C²). Notably, the Q₃₃ exhibits remarkable similarity to that of PMN–PT single crystals, further contributing to the enhanced piezoelectric performance of textured ceramics. Phase field model of ferroelectrics was performed to understand the texturing on Q₃₃ and elucidate the underlying mechanism at the domain level. The textured ceramics exhibit excellent combinatory “soft” and “hard” properties, which are the promising materials for developing projecting-receiving dual-purpose transducers with high efficiency and high sensitivity.