A vibrating body includes a substrate, a piezoelectric element comprising a piezoelectric layer and electrode layers and joined to the substrate, and a ceramic layer between the substrate and the piezoelectric element. The ceramic layer comprises a first region and a second region which is adjacent to the first region in a direction perpendicular to a thickness direction of the ceramic layer. The first region has a square shape, each side of the first region having a length equal to a thickness of the ceramic layer, the second region has a square shape, each side of the second region having the length equal to the thickness of the ceramic layer, and a difference between a porosity of the first region and a porosity of the second region is not greater than 15%.

There are provided a piezoelectric element in which the peeling of a surface electrode is suppressed, and a piezoelectric vibrating device, a portable terminal, an acoustic generator, an acoustic generating device and an electronic apparatus including the same. A piezoelectric actuator includes a piezoelectric element including a plate-shaped stacked body including inner electrodes and piezoelectric layers laminated, a surface electrode disposed on one of main surfaces of the stacked body, the surface electrode being electrically connected to the inner electrodes. The surface electrode has a first area and a second area. The first area is an area mainly containing silver, and the second area is an area mainly containing silver and palladium and disposed so as to contact a piezoelectric layer.

Provided is a piezoelectric material that is free of lead and potassium, has satisfactory insulation property and piezoelectricity, and has a high Curie temperature. The piezoelectric material includes a perovskite-type metal oxide represented by the following general formula (1): General formula (1) (Na.sub.xM.sub.1-y)(Zr.sub.z(Nb.sub.1-wTa.sub.w).sub.y(Ti.sub.1-vSn.sub.v).sub.(1-y-z))O.sub.3 where M represents at least any one of Ba, Sr, and Ca, and relationships of 0.80≦x≦0.95, 0.85≦y≦0.95, 0<z≦0.03, 0≦v<0.2, 0≦w<0.2, and 0.05≦1−y−z≦0.15 are satisfied.

A piezoelectric element which is a single-layer or laminated piezoelectric element has a first electrode, a second electrode, and a piezoelectric ceramic layer. The first electrode and second electrode contain silver by 50 percent by weight or more. The piezoelectric ceramic layer is placed between the first electrode and second electrode, and constituted by a polycrystalline substance of alkali niobate piezoelectric ceramic containing at least one alkali earth metal being calcium, strontium, or barium, and silver. According to this constitution, the electrical resistance and piezoelectric property can be improved, and consequently high reliability and good piezoelectric characteristics can be achieved.

A bender beam actuator includes a first layer of piezoelectric material and a second layer of piezoelectric material overlying a portion of the first layer of piezoelectric material, where a length of the first layer of piezoelectric material is at least 2% greater than a length of the second layer of piezoelectric material.

The present disclosure relates to an electromechanical actuator, having a stack arrangement made of ceramic basis material having electromechanical properties and electrodes as well as a ceramic insulation for operation/use of the actuator in a humid environment. To ensure a long service life of the actuator with increased electromechanical expansion, an exemplary structure of the ceramic insulation has a smaller average grain size than the structure of the ceramic basis material. A method for the production of an actuator having ceramic insulation and a method for controlling such an actuator are also disclosed.

A piezoelectric composition having a complex oxide including potassium and niobium, in which the complex oxide has a first phase represented by a compositional formula KNbO.sub.3, and one or two phases selected from a second phase represented by a compositional formula K.sub.4Nb.sub.6O.sub.17 and a third phase represented by a compositional formula KNb.sub.3O.sub.8.

A multilayer piezoelectric element includes a ceramic body formed by a piezoelectric ceramic, and having first and second end face facing a longitudinal direction, first and second principal faces facing a thickness direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction. A pair of external electrodes cover the first and second end faces, extend from the first and second end faces onto the first principal face via ridge parts connecting the end faces with the principal faces, and project in the thickness direction on the first principal face. Multiple internal electrodes are stacked inside the ceramic body and are connected alternately to the pair of external electrodes along the thickness direction. A surface electrode is provided on at least one of the first and second principal faces, and connected to the external electrode different from the one to which the internal electrode adjacent in the thickness direction is connected.

Disclosed are a piezoelectric speaker employing a piezoelectric device having a through-hole and a method for manufacturing the same. The piezoelectric speaker includes a piezoelectric device including a stacked body having through-holes and electrodes formed at the stacked body, an adhesive layer disposed on the lower surface of the piezoelectric device, and a diaphragm attached to the piezoelectric device by the adhesive layer. The through-holes are arranged to decrease in size as they move away from the center of the piezoelectric element. The through-holes have a symmetrical arrangement with respect to the center, and the inner surface of each through-hole has a curved edge. The structure and arrangement of these through-holes do not cause cracks during the sintering process.

A piezoelectric composition containing: at least one or more elements selected from alkali metal elements; at least one or more elements selected from a group consisting of vanadium, niobium, and tantalum; copper or copper and germanium; and oxygen. The piezoelectric composition has a main phase, and a high Cu-concentration phase in which a content ratio of copper is higher than the main phase, and when a content ratio of oxygen in the high Cu-concentration phase is set as O.sub.g, and a content ratio of copper is set as Cu.sub.g, O.sub.g and Cu.sub.g satisfy relationships of 51≤O.sub.g≤60 and 2.0≤Cu.sub.g≤15.