Tailoring nanomechanical properties of hard and soft PZT piezoceramics via domain engineering by selective annealing

The nanomechanical properties of polycrystalline hard and soft lead zirconate titanate (PZT) (abbreviated as PZT-H and PZT-S, respectively) are measured on samples having different ferroelectric domain configurations. The ferroelectric domain configurations are varied by selectively annealing the as poled samples below and above the curie temperature, T-c. The ferroelectric domain configurations characterized using piezoresponse force microscopy reveal that the degree of randomization of ferroelectric domains increases with increasing annealing temperature. Nanoindentation experiments reveal that the above T-c annealed samples exhibit the highest hardness, H among all the samples. All the samples, exhibit strong indentation size effect where H decreases with increasing in indentation load. The possible reasons for enhancement in Hin annealed samples is attributed to the differences in ferroelectric domain configurations, defect dipoles, and oxygen vacancies. The results provide insights about designing piezoelectric materials with good combination of mechanical and piezoelectric properties.

Automated summary

The nanomechanical properties of polycrystalline hard and soft lead zirconate titanate (PZT) are measured on samples with different ferroelectric domain configurations, which are controlled by selective annealing below and above the curie temperature. The results show that the degree of randomization of ferroelectric domains increases with higher annealing temperature, leading to higher hardness in the annealed samples above the curie temperature. This study provides insights into designing piezoelectric materials with a good combination of mechanical and piezoelectric properties.