A piezoelectric film contains iron-containing potassium sodium niobate represented by General Formula (1) and granular crystal particles having an average aspect ratio of 3 or less.

(K.sub.xNa.sub.1-x).sub.a(Fe.sub.yNb.sub.z)O.sub.3  (1)

In Formula (1), x represents a number satisfying 0<x<1, a represents a number satisfying 0.90<a≤1, and y and z represent numbers satisfying y+z=1 and 0.006≤y/z≤0.04.

Provided is a piezoelectric element including a first electrode provided above a substrate, a piezoelectric layer including a plurality of crystal grains containing potassium, sodium, and niobium and provided above the first electrode, and a second electrode provided above the piezoelectric layer. An atom concentration N.sub.K1 (atm %) of potassium contained in grain boundaries of the crystal grains and an atom concentration N.sub.K2 (atm %) of potassium contained in the crystal grains satisfy a relationship of 1.0<N.sub.K1/N.sub.K2≤2.4.

A method of manufacturing a piezoelectric actuator includes preparing a laminate including a substrate, a first electrode layer disposed on the substrate, a piezoelectric layer disposed on the first electrode layer, and a second electrode layer disposed on the piezoelectric layer, and forming a contour shape of the piezoelectric layer. The forming of the contour shape includes dry etching the piezoelectric layer from the second electrode layer side to dig the piezoelectric layer halfway in a thickness direction, covering, with a resist film, a dry etched surface formed on a side surface of the piezoelectric layer by the dry etching, and wet etching the piezoelectric layer from the second electrode layer side to dig the piezoelectric layer until the first electrode layer is reached.

The present invention relates to a method of preparing a shape-reconfigurable micropatterned polymer haptic material using an electric field technique, and more particularly, to a method of preparing a shape-reconfigurable micro-patterned polymer thin film and a haptic material by controlling the orientation of a liquid-crystalline organic polymer using an electric field control system and inducing the generation of defect structures having a regular microstructure array in a polymer film.

A supporting film is provided on an opening and a wall of a substrate. A piezoelectric film is provided on a first region of the supporting film corresponding to the opening and a second region of the supporting film corresponding to the wall. The thickness of the piezoelectric film at the second region is smaller than that of the piezoelectric film provided at the first region. Therefore, vibration of the piezoelectric film in the first region is large, and vibration of the piezoelectric film in the second region is small. This alleviates disadvantages such as a loss of the vibration characteristics of a piezoelectric element.

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.

An actuator includes a substrate, a diaphragm on the substrate, a lower electrode on the diaphragm, a piezoelectric body on the lower electrode, and an upper electrode on the piezoelectric body. A ratio of lead (Pb) and zirconium (Zr) in atomic percent (atm %) present at a grain boundary in the piezoelectric body satisfies a relation of Pb/Zr>1.7.

A method of producing a film including repeating a cycle comprised of an application step, a coat removal step and a sintering step N times (N≥2), wherein relative to a liquid supply position in the (n)th (1≤n≤N−1) cycle coat removal step, a liquid supply position in the (n+1)th cycle coat removal step is the same or shifted in a direction approaching the center of a substrate for all n(s) and at the same time, shifted in a direction approaching the center of the substrate for at least one of the (n)s; or is the same or shifted in a direction away from the center of the substrate for all n(s) and at the same time, shifted in a direction away from the center of the substrate for at least one of the (n)s.

A piezoelectric element including a first electrode provided above a base body, a first piezoelectric layer provided so as to be in contact with the base body and cover the first electrode, a second piezoelectric layer provided above the first piezoelectric layer, and a second electrode provided above the second piezoelectric layer, wherein the first piezoelectric layer includes a composite oxide that contains potassium and niobium and that has a perovskite-type structure containing potassium as a main component at an A-site, the second piezoelectric layer includes a composite oxide that contains potassium, sodium, and niobium and that has a perovskite-type structure, and the first piezoelectric layer has a higher potassium atomic concentration (atm %) than the second piezoelectric layer.

This liquid composition for forming a KNN film includes an organic metal compound including an organic potassium compound, an organic sodium compound, and an organic niobium compound, and a solvent. In this liquid composition for forming a KNN film, the organic potassium compound and the sodium compound are each metal salts of a carboxylic acid represented by General Formula C.sub.nH.sub.2n+1COOH (here, 4≤n≤8), the organic niobium compound is a niobium alkoxide or a metal salt of a carboxylic acid represented by General Formula C.sub.nH.sub.2n+1COOH (here, 4≤n≤8), and a main solvent is a carboxylic acid represented by General Formula C.sub.nH.sub.2n+1COOH (here, 4≤n≤8) and is included in an amount of 50% by mass to 90% by mass with respect to 100% by mass of the liquid composition for forming a KNN film.