Effects of uniaxial stress and DC bias field on the piezoelectric, dielectric, and elastic properties of piezoelectric ceramics

We have measured some of the dielectric, elastic, and piezoelectric constants of several types of PZT piezoelectric ceramics, manufactured by EDO Corporation, as a function of applied electric field and mechanical stress. Both the high frequency impedance resonance method and the low frequency response of the material under electrical and mechanical excitations were employed to determine these constants. We present the dependence of these material constants on an applied DC bias voltage and on an applied mechanical stress. Most of the results can be understood on the basis of the extrinsic contributions to the piezoelectric response that arises from the existence of domains in the materials