The present invention provides a piezoelectric material not containing lead and potassium, having a high relative density, a high Curie temperature, and a high mechanical quality factor, and exhibiting good piezoelectricity. The piezoelectric material contains 0.04 percent by mole or more and 2.00 percent by mole or less of Cu relative to 1 mol of metal oxide represented by General formula (1) below.
((Na.sub.1-zLi.sub.z).sub.xBa.sub.1-y)(Nb.sub.yTi.sub.1-y)O.sub.3 (in Formula, 0.70≦x≦0.99, 0.75≦y≦0.99, and 0<z<0.15, and x<y)  General formula (1)

A piezoelectric ceramic electronic component that includes a piezoelectric ceramic body including at least one piezoelectric ceramic layer; and a plurality of electrodes on a surface or inside of the piezoelectric ceramic body and arranged so that the at least one piezoelectric ceramic layer is sandwiched between adjacent electrodes of the plurality of electrodes. The at least one piezoelectric ceramic layer is a ceramic sintered body containing a potassium sodium niobate-based compound and Mn. When the at least one piezoelectric ceramic layer sandwiched between the adjacent electrodes is divided into three equal parts in a thickness direction to sequentially define a first region, a second region, and a third region between the adjacent electrodes, a second Mn concentration in the second region is higher than a first Mn concentration in the first region and a third Mn concentration in the third region.

A lead-free piezoelectric ceramic material has the general chemical formula xBiCoO3-y(Bi0.5Na0.5)TiO3-z(Bi0.5K0.5)TiO3, xBiCoO3-y(Bi0.5Na0.5)TiO3-zNaN-bO3, xBiCoO3-y(Bi0.5Na0.5)TiO3-zKNbO3, xBiCoO3-yBi(Mg0.5Ti0.5)O3-z(Bi0.5Na0.5)TiO3, xBiCoO3-yBa-TiO3-z(Bi0.5Na0.5)TiO3, or xBiCoO3-yNaNbO3-zKNbO3; wherein x+y+z=1, and x, y, z≠0.

The present invention aims to provide an excellent piezoelectric composition and an excellent piezoelectric element if the piezoelectric properties especially a high spontaneous polarization and a sufficiently high resistivity, the low pollution, the environment and the ecology are considered. In the piezoelectric composition, the main component contains the substance represented by the following formula with a perovskite-typed structure, (Bi.sub.(0.5x+y+z)Na.sub.0.5x).sub.m(Ti.sub.x+0.5yMg.sub.0.5yAl.sub.z)O.sub.3. Wherein, 0.01≦x≦0.8, 0.2≦y≦0.8, 0.01≦z≦0.6, 0.75≦m≦1.0, and x+y+z=1.

A vibrating plate-bonded body includes a supporting substrate composed of silicon, a vibrating plate composed of a highly rigid ceramics and having a thickness of 100 μm or smaller, and a bonding layer between the supporting substrate and vibrating plate, contacting a bonding surface of the vibrating plate and composed of α-Si. The arithmetic average roughness Ra of the bonding surface of the vibrating plate is 0.01 nm or more and 10.0 nm or less, and the pit density of the bonding surface of the vibrating plate is 10 counts or more per 100 μm.sup.2.

A nonlinear magnetic force-based arched piezoelectric ceramic energy harvesting deceleration strip, which comprises an outer case and an internal generating mechanism. The outer case structure comprises an upper deceleration strip and a casing. The casing is embedded in the pavement structure by excavating the upper part of surface course. A rebounding mechanism is located between the upper deceleration strip and casing to restore the pressed upper deceleration strip. Features: the generating mechanism comprises a rack, a gear set and generating discs. The rack is disposed at the bottom of the upper deceleration strip and moving up and down therewith. The rack can drive the gear set to generate acceleration, and the transmission shafts drive the left and right generating discs to rotate. The gear set is combined with three transmission shafts.

A composite substrate includes a single crystal support substrate containing first element as a main component; an oxide single crystal layer provided on the single crystal support substrate and containing a second element (excluding oxygen) as a main component; and an amorphous layer provided in between the single crystal support substrate and the oxide single crystal layer and containing a first element, a second element, and Ar, the amorphous layer having a first amorphous region in which proportion of the first element is higher than proportion of the second element, and a second amorphous region in which the proportion of the second element is higher than the proportion of the first element, concentration of Ar contained in the first amorphous region being higher than concentration of Ar contained in the second amorphous region and being 3 atom % or more.

Crystals having a modified regular tetrahedron shape are provided. Crystals preferably have four substantially identical triangular faces that define four truncated vertices and six chamfered edges. The six chamfered edges can have an average length of l, and an average width of w, and 8≦l/w≦9.5.

Disclosed herein is a method of manufacturing a zinc oxide nanosheet structure. The zinc oxide nanosheet structure may be manufactured by forming a zinc oxide seed on a substrate and growing zinc oxide from the zinc oxide seed in a zinc oxide growth solution in which zinc precursors and a doping-element-containing compound are dissolved.

A ferroelectric capacitor having a doped graphene bottom electrode and uses thereof are described. The doped graphene bottom electrode layer is deposited on a substrate with a ferroelectric layer deposited between the doped graphene layer and a top electrode.