Provided is a voice sensor comprising a piezoelectric material layer includes a substrate, a support layer, a metal layer, a piezoelectric material layer on the metal layer and an electrode on the piezoelectric material layer, and the substrate integrally supports a device layer of the voice sensor by exposing a part of a thin film including the piezoelectric material layer, the electrode and a polymer layer.

A piezoelectric element 1 includes a first electrode 20, a second electrode 40, and a piezoelectric layer 30 provided between the first electrode 20 and the second electrode 40. The piezoelectric layer 30 is composed of a composite oxide having a perovskite-type structure and containing potassium (K), sodium (Na), and niobium (Nb), and has a first peak derived from a (100) plane, a second peak derived from a (010) plane, and a third peak derived from a (001) plane in an X-ray diffraction pattern obtained by θ-2θ measurement.

The present disclosure provides a control method of a fluid device. The control method includes the steps of (a) providing the fluid device, which includes a plurality of flow guiding units manufactured by a micro-electro-mechanical-system process; (b) dividing the flow guiding units into a plurality of groups, which are electrically connected to and controlled by a control module; and (c) generating a driving signal by the control module for a corresponding one of the groups, wherein the control module generates a high level signal to a specific one of the groups, so that the flow guiding units of the specific one of the groups are driven to transport fluid, and thereby controlling the fluid device to discharge a specific amount of fluid.

An electromechanical transducer includes an electromechanical transducer film of laminated layers including a perovskite-type complex oxide represented by a general formula of ABO.sub.3; and a pair of electrodes opposed to each other with the electromechanical transducer film interposed between the pair of electrodes. In the general formula of ABO.sub.3, A includes Pb and B includes Zr and Ti. A variable ratio ΔPb of Pb, determined by Pb(max)−Pb(min), is 6% or less and a variable ratio ΔZr of Zr, determined by Zr(max)−Zr(min), is 9% or less, where an atomic weight ratio of Pb in the electromechanical transducer film is denoted by Pb/B, an atomic weight ratio of Zr in the electromechanical transducer film is denoted by Zr/B, a maximum value and a minimum value of the atomic weight ratio of Pb in a film thickness direction of the electromechanical transducer film are denoted by Pb(max) and Pb(min), respectively, and a maximum value and a minimum value of the atomic weight ratio of Zr in the film thickness direction of the electromechanical transducer film are denoted by Zr(max) and Zr(min), respectively.

The invention relates to a method for producing ceramics having piezoelectric properties in predominantly aqueous suspending agents.

A piezoelectric actuator includes a vibration portion, a support portion that is integrally configured with the vibration portion and supports the vibration portion, and a piezoelectric element that is disposed on the vibration portion. The piezoelectric element includes a piezoelectric film including columnar crystal grains extending in a thickness direction. When a thickness of the piezoelectric film is referred to as T [μm] and an average diameter of the crystal grains in the width direction is referred to as D [μm], T/D is within a range of 10 to 100. The thickness T of the piezoelectric film is larger than or equal to 2 μm. A standard deviation of diameters of the crystal grains in the width direction is less than or equal to 1.8 μm.

There is provided a laminated substrate with a piezoelectric thin film, comprising: a substrate; an electrode film formed on the substrate; and a piezoelectric thin film formed on the electrode film, wherein the piezoelectric thin film is made of an alkali niobium oxide represented by a composition formula of (K.sub.1-xNa.sub.x)NbO.sub.3 (0<x<1), having a perovskite structure, and oriented preferentially in (001) plane direction, and contains a metallic element selected from a group consisting of Mn and Cu at a concentration of 0.2 at % or more and 0.6 at % or less.

A piezoelectric actuator includes: a vibration plate: a first piezoelectric body arranged on one side in a thickness direction of the vibration plate; a second piezoelectric body arranged on a side, of the first piezoelectric body, opposite to the vibration plate in the thickness direction; a first electrode arranged between the vibration plate and the first piezoelectric body; a second electrode arranged between the first and second piezoelectric bodies in the thickness direction, and overlapping with the first electrode in the thickness direction; and a third electrode arranged on a side, of the second piezoelectric body, opposite to the first piezoelectric body in the thickness direction, and overlapping with the second electrode in the thickness direction. The second piezoelectric body covers at least a part of a first end surface, of the first piezoelectric body, which is an end surface in a first direction orthogonal to the thickness direction.

A sodium niobate-barium titanate-based coating liquid composition including: (a) a sol-gel raw material containing (i) a niobium component, such as a niobium alkoxide, (ii) a sodium component, such as a sodium alkoxide, (iii) a titanium component, such as a titanium alkoxide, and (iv) a barium component, such as a barium alkoxide; and (b) a compound including at least one kind selected from the group consisting of a β-ketoester compound and a β-diketone compound represented by the following formula (1): ##STR00001## where R.sub.1 represents an alkyl group having 1 or more to 6 or less carbon atoms.

A piezoelectric element includes a piezoelectric layer formed as a stacked structure of first, second, and third piezoelectric films. The first piezoelectric film is formed on a first electrode. The second piezoelectric film is formed on the first piezoelectric film. The third piezoelectric film is formed on the second piezoelectric film. Each of the first, second, and third piezoelectric films includes potassium, sodium, and niobium. A second electrode is formed on the piezoelectric layer. A concentration of sodium in the first piezoelectric film is greater than a concentration of sodium in the second piezoelectric film. The concentration of sodium in the second piezoelectric film is greater than a concentration of sodium in the third piezoelectric film.