Advantages and Challenges of Relaxor-PbTiO3 Ferroelectric Crystals for Electroacoustic Transducers- A Review.

Relaxor-PbTiO3 (PT) based ferroelectric crystals with the perovskite structure have been investigated over the last few decades due to their ultrahigh piezoelectric coefficients (d33 > 1500 pC/N) and electromechanical coupling factors (k33 > 90%), far outperforming state-of-the-art ferroelectric polycrystalline Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 ceramics, and are at the forefront of advanced electroacoustic applications. In this review, the performance merits of relaxor-PT crystals in various electroacoustic devices are presented from a piezoelectric material viewpoint. Opportunities come from not only the ultrahigh properties, specifically coupling and piezoelectric coefficients, but through novel vibration modes and crystallographic/domain engineering. Figure of merits (FOMs) of crystals with various compositions and phases were established for various applications, including medical ultrasonic transducers, underwater transducers, acoustic sensors and tweezers. For each device application, recent developments in relaxor-PT ferroelectric crystals were surveyed and compared with state-of-the-art polycrystalline piezoelectrics, with an emphasis on their strong anisotropic features and crystallographic uniqueness, including engineered domain - property relationships. This review starts with an introduction on electroacoustic transducers and the history of piezoelectric materials. The development of the high performance relaxor-PT single crystals, with a focus on their uniqueness in transducer applications, is then discussed. In the third part, various FOMs of piezoelectric materials for a wide range of ultrasound applications, including diagnostic ultrasound, therapeutic ultrasound, underwater acoustic and passive sensors, tactile sensors and acoustic tweezers, are evaluated to provide a thorough understanding of the materials' behavior under operational conditions. Structure-property-performance relationships are then established. Finally, the impacts and challenges of relaxor-PT crystals are summarized to guide on-going and future research in the development of relaxor-PT crystals for the next generation electroacoustic transducers.

1-3 piezoelectric composites for high temperature transducer applications.

High temperature Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 /epoxy 1-3 composites were fabricated using the dice and fill method. The epoxy filler was modified with glass spheres in order to improve the thermal reliability of the composites at elevated temperatures. Temperature dependent dielectric and electromechanical properties of the composites were measured after aging at 250°C with different dwelling times. Obvious cracks were observed and the electrodes were damaged in the composite with unmodified epoxy after 200 hours, leading to the failure of the composite. In contrast, composites with >12 vol% glass sphere loaded epoxies were found to exhibit minimal electrical property variation after aging for 500 hours, with dielectric permittivity, piezoelectric coefficient and electromechanical coupling being on the order of 940, 310pC/N and 57%, respectively. This is due to the improved thermal expansion behavior of the modified filler.

Single crystal PMN-PT/epoxy 1-3 composite for energy-harvesting application.

One key parameter in using electroactive materials to harvest electric energy from mechanical sources is the energy conversion efficiency. Recently, it was shown that, in the relaxor ferroelectric PMN-PT single crystals, a very high longitudinal electromechanical coupling factor (>90%) can be obtained. This paper investigates energy harvesting using 1-3 composites of PMN-PT single crystals in a soft epoxy matrix. It is shown that 1-3 composites enable the single crystals operating in the longitudinal mode to achieve high efficiency for energy harvesting, and the soft-polymer, matrix-supported single-crystal rods maintain high mechanical integrity under different external loads. For comparison, 1-3 composites with piezoceramic PZT also are investigated in energy-harvesting applications, and the results show that the high coupling factor of single crystal PMN-PT 1-3 composites leads to much higher electric energy output for similar mechanical energy input. The harvested energy density of 1-3 composite with single crystal (22.1 mW/cm3 under a stress of 40.4 MPa) is about twice of that harvested with PZT ceramic 1-3 composite (12 mW/cm3 under a stress of 39 MPa). At a higher stress level, the harvested-energy density of 1-3 PMN-PT single crystal composite can reach 96 mW/cm3.

Design, Fabrication, and Characterization of a Bifrequency Colinear Array.

Ultrasound imaging with high resolution and large penetration depth has been increasingly adopted in medical diagnosis, surgery guidance, and treatment assessment. Conventional ultrasound works at a particular frequency, with a [Formula: see text] fractional bandwidth of [Formula: see text], limiting the imaging resolution or depth of field. In this paper, a bifrequency colinear array with resonant frequencies of 8 and 20 MHz was investigated to meet the requirements of resolution and penetration depth for a broad range of ultrasound imaging applications. Specifically, a 32-element bifrequency colinear array was designed and fabricated, followed by element characterization and real-time sectorial scan (S-scan) phantom imaging using a Verasonics system. The bifrequency colinear array was tested in four different modes by switching between low and high frequencies on transmit and receive. The four modes included the following: 1) transmit low, receive low; 2) transmit low, receive high; 3) transmit high, receive low; and 4) transmit high, receive high. After testing, the axial and lateral resolutions of all modes were calculated and compared. The results of this study suggest that bifrequency colinear arrays are potential aids for wideband fundamental imaging and harmonic/subharmonic imaging.

Hydrostatic piezoelectric properties of [011] poled Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-PbTiO3 single crystals and 2-2 lamellar composites.

The hydrostatic piezoelectric properties of [011] poled Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-PbTiO3 (PMN-PT) crystals and corresponding 2-2 crystal/epoxy composites were investigated. The crystal volume ratio and compositional dependencies of the hydrostatic charge and voltage coefficients (dh and gh ) and hydrostatic figure of merit (FOM) dh × gh were determined, where large FOM value of 3.2 pm2/N with high stability as a function of hydrostatic pressure was achieved for rhombohedral crystal composites. In addition, the stress amplification effects of the face-plate and different epoxy matrixes were investigated, with maximum FOM value being on the order of 92 pm2/N, indicating that 2-2 crystal/epoxy composites are promising materials for hydrostatic applications.

Design, fabrication, and characterization of a single-aperture 1.5-MHz/3-MHz dual-frequency HIFU transducer.

High-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) treatment efficiency is critical in maximizing the hyperthermia and reducing the surgery time. In this paper, a single-aperture, 1.5 MHz/3 MHz dual-frequency HIFU transducer was designed, fabricated, and characterized for tissue ablation enhancement. Double PZT-2 layers were configured in serial and dual-frequency ultrasound waves can be concurrently generated by exciting one of the PZT-2 layers. Impulse responses from the prototype showed that the wave amplitudes at 1.5 and 3 MHz were about the same, and both are more than 12 dB larger than those of higher orders of harmonics. Tissue ablation tests demonstrated that higher temperature rise can be achieved with dual-frequency ultrasound than with single-frequency ablation at the same acoustic power.

Electroacoustic response of 1-3 piezocomposite transducers for high power applications.

The electroacoustic performance of 1-3 piezoelectric composite transducers with low loss polymer filler was studied and compared to monolithic Pb(Zr,Ti)O(3) (PZT) piezoelectric transducers. The 1-3 composite transducers exhibited significantly high electromechanical coupling factor (k(t) ∼ 0.64) when compared to monolithic counterparts (k(t) ∼ 0.5), leading to the improved bandwidth and loop sensitivity, being on the order of 67% and -24.0 dB versus 44% and -24.8 dB, respectively. In addition, the acoustic output power and transmit efficiency (∼50%) were found to be comparable to the monolithic PZT transducers, demonstrating potential for broad bandwidth, high power ultrasonic transducer applications.

Very high frequency (beyond 100 MHz) PZT kerfless linear arrays.

This paper presents the design, fabrication, and measurements of very high frequency kerfless linear arrays prepared from PZT film and PZT bulk material. A 12-microm PZT thick film fabricated from PZT-5H powder/solution composite and a piece of 15-microm PZT-5H sheet were used to fabricate 32-element kerfless high-frequency linear arrays with photolithography. The PZT thick film was prepared by spin-coating of PZT sol-gel composite solution. The thin PZT-5H sheet sample was prepared by lapping a PZT-5H ceramic with a precision lapping machine. The measured results of the 2 arrays were compared. The PZT film array had a center frequency of 120 MHz, a bandwidth of 60% with a parylene matching layer, and an insertion loss of 41 dB. The PZT ceramic sheet array was found to have a center frequency of 128 MHz with a poorer bandwidth (40% with a parylene matching layer) but a better sensitivity (28 dB insertion loss).