Relationship between cyclic loading and degradation of piezoelectric properties in Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 ceramics

The degradation of piezoelectric properties with the application of compressive cyclic loading and the mechanical fatigue behaviour were investigated in Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 ceramics of tetragonal, morphotropic phase boundary and rhombohedral compositions. X-ray diffractometer analyses showed that the domains parallel to the electric field direction undergo rearrangement during the cyclic loading into random directions, which is responsible for the degradation of peizoelectric properties. For all three compositions, the fatigue resistance was lowered by poling treatment. The highest fatigue resistance was observed in the rhombohedral composition.