Analysis of elastic strain and crystallographic texture in poled rhombohedral PZT ceramics

The elastic strain and crystallographic texture of a rhombohedral lead zirconate titanate ceramic have been characterised in the remanent state, after poling, using high-energy synchrotron X-ray diffraction as a function of the grain orientation psi relative to the poling direction. It is observed that the (200) diffraction peak exhibits pronounced shifts as a function of psi, indicating an elastic lattice strain, while others ({111}, {112} and {220}) show marked changes in intensity as a result of preferred ferroelectric domain orientation. It is shown that the (200) peak is not affected by the domain switching itself but rather acts like an elastic macrostrain sensor. A simple Eshelby analysis is used to demonstrate that both the elastic strain and texture vary systematically with psi according to the factor (3cos(2)psi-1). This angular dependence is evaluated through micromechanics modelling. The physical meaning of the texture variations with psi is also discussed. (c) 2006 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.