A relaxor-PT based piezoelectric crystal is disclosed, comprising the general formula of (Pb.sub.1-1.5xM.sub.x){[(M.sub.I,M.sub.II).sub.1-z(M.sub.I′,M.sub.II′).sub.z].sub.1-yTi.sub.y}O.sub.3, wherein: M is a rare earth cation; M.sub.I is selected from the group consisting of Mg.sup.2+, Zn.sup.2+, Yb.sup.3+, Sc.sup.3+, and In.sup.3+; M.sub.II is Nb.sup.5+; M.sub.I′ is selected from the group consisting of Mg.sup.2+, Zn.sup.2+, Yb.sup.3+, Sc.sup.3+, In.sup.3+, and Zr.sup.4; M.sub.II′ is Nb.sup.5+ or Zr.sup.4+; 0<x≤0.05; 0.02<y<0.7; and 0≤z≤1, provided that if either M.sub.I′ or M.sub.II′ is Zr.sup.4+, both M.sub.I′ and M.sub.II′ are Zr.sup.4+. A method for forming the relaxor-PT based piezoelectric crystal is disclosed, comprising pre-synthesizing precursor materials by calcining mixed oxides, mixing the precursor materials with single oxides and calcining to form a feeding material, and growing the relaxor-PT based piezoelectric crystal having the general formula of (Pb.sub.1-1.5xM.sub.x){[(M.sub.I,M.sub.II).sub.1-z(M.sub.I′,M.sub.II′).sub.z].sub.1-yTi.sub.y}O.sub.3 from the feeding material by a Bridgman method.

A method of fabricating a piezoelectric layer includes depositing a piezoelectric material onto a substrate in a first crystallographic phase by physical vapor deposition while the substrate remains at a temperature below 400° C., and thermally annealing the substrate at a temperature above 500° C. to convert the piezoelectric material to a second crystallographic phase. The physical vapor deposition includes sputtering from a target in a plasma deposition chamber.

Provided is an electric field-vibration generating transducer having a piezoelectric material of a high degree of displacement, and a manufacturing method thereof. The electric field-vibration generating transducer lowers the cost of production through miniaturization simultaneously with realizing excellent generating characteristics of the electric field-vibration generating transducer based on high efficiency and low voltage driving because the piezoelectric material of the high degree of displacement (high strain piezoelectrics) having a high piezoelectric constant (d.sub.33=1,000 to 6,000 pC/N), a high dielectric constant (K.sub.3.sup.T=6,000 to 15,000) as well as a low dielectric loss (tan δ<2%) is applied thereto, so the electric field-vibration generating transducer may accelerate the movement of a material, a chemical action, and a biological reaction, and may be applied to a medical device for the purpose of treatment for tumors aimed at human bodies and animals.

There is provided a piezoelectric element including: a substrate; a first electrode formed at a first substrate surface of the substrate in a first direction; a first piezoelectric layer that is formed at the first electrode and that includes a flat surface portion along the first substrate surface and an inclined surface portion inclined with respect to the flat surface portion; a second piezoelectric layer that is formed at the inclined surface portion 170a and whose thickness is smaller than a thickness of the flat surface portion of the first piezoelectric layer; and a second electrode formed at at least the flat surface portion.

The present disclosure relates to a piezoelectric single-crystal element, a MEMS device using same, and a method for manufacturing same, wherein the piezoelectric single-crystal element includes a wafer, a lower electrode stacked on the wafer, a piezoelectric single-crystal thin film stacked on the lower electrode, and an upper electrode stacked on the piezoelectric single-crystal thin film, wherein the piezoelectric single-crystal thin film is composed of PMN-PT, PIN-PMN-PT or Mn:PIN-PMN-PT, and the piezoelectric single-crystal thin film has a polarization direction set to a <001> axis, a <011> axis or a <111> axis, and a MEMS device using same.

A method for depolarization suppression of in rhombohedral relaxor-based ferroelectric single crystal. The purpose of the present invention is to address the problem that the rhombohedral relaxor-based ferroelectric single crystals would depolarize when driven to sufficiently electric field due to their low coercive field. In the present invention, the crystal cut, poling direction and compressive stress application direction of the crystal is selected based on the domain structure and anisotropic nature of the crystal such that the spontaneous direction(s) of the crystal would rotate towards the poling direction in response to the applied compressive stress. Through application of appropriate compressive stress, the magnitude of depolarization field of the rhombohedral relaxor-based ferroelectric single crystals can be effectively increased.

There are provided a piezoelectric film-attached substrate and piezoelectric element, which include, on a substrate in the following order, a lower electrode layer, a piezoelectric film containing a perovskite-type oxide containing lead as a main component of an A site, and a buffer layer, where the buffer layer contains a metal oxide represented by M.sub.dN.sub.1-dO.sub.e. Here, M consists of one or more metal elements substitutable for the A site of the perovskite-type oxide and has an electronegativity of less than 0.95. In a case of 0<d<1 and in a case where the electronegativity is denoted by X, 1.41X−1.05≤d≤A1.Math.exp(−X/t1)+y0, where A1=1.68×10.sup.12, t1=0.0306, and y0=0.59958.

There is provided a method for producing a piezoelectric element, which allows for forming a columnar microstructure with a small width and a high aspect ratio. The method is intended to produce a piezoelectric element 102 including a three-dimensional structure group 20 having a plurality of the three-dimensional structures 21 and 321 formed in a plate-like or columnar shape with a width of 30 μm or less and a height of 80 μm or more. The production method includes a first process of fabricating a plurality of plate-like or columnar precursor shapes 82a on a bulk material 81 formed of a Pb-based piezoelectric material, and a second process of reducing the width of the precursor shapes 82a to a predetermined value using an etching liquid.

An optical transformer includes a plurality of light emitters, a plurality of photovoltaic cells positioned to receive light from at least a first subset of the plurality of light emitters, the plurality of photovoltaic cells including at least a first photovoltaic cell and a second photovoltaic cell, and one or more optically triggered switches positioned to receive light from at least a second subset of the plurality of light emitters, the one or more optically triggered switches including at least a first optically triggered switch electrically coupled to the first photovoltaic cell and the second photovoltaic cell. A method of operating the optical transformer is also described.

A micromachined ultrasonic transducer (MUT) which comprises a first piezoelectric layer and a second piezoelectric layer. The first piezoelectric layer is disposed between a first electrode and a second electrode. The second piezoelectric layer is disposed between the second electrode and a third electrode. At least the first electrode has first and second ends along a first axis, one or more of which is defined by a radius of curvature R. A second axis normal to the first passes through a midpoint of the first axis. A half-width of the first electrode is defined by a length L measured from the midpoint, in the direction of the second axis, to an outer perimeter of the first electrode. A total width of the first electrode at its narrowest point along the first axis is at most 2L such that the first electrode has a concave shape. R/L, is greater than 1.