Exceptional piezoelectricity and high electromechanical coupling coefficients in Eu3+-doped PMN-PZ-PT textured ceramics via synergistic heterogeneity engineering

Lead-based relaxor ferroelectric materials are extensively utilized in various fields such as ultrasonic transducers, sensors, high-precision displacement control, and underwater acoustic detection, owing to their exceptional electrical properties. Nevertheless, the application of lead-based relaxor ferroelectric ceramics in high-end ultrasonic transducers is constrained by their suboptimal electromechanical coupling properties and inadequate overall piezoelectric performance. Here, by employing the strategy of “collaborative design of local structural heterogeneity and texturing”, excellent comprehensive electromechanical properties (d33 = 1310 pC N−1, k33 = 0.87, and TC = 170 °C) were achieved by introducing rare earth Eu3+ ions into [001]PC-textured Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3–PbZrO3–PbTiO3 (PMN-PZ-PT) ceramics. Their d33 is about 5.5 times that of ordinary ceramic materials without rare earth ion doping. Furthermore, the examination of PFM and relaxor properties reveals that improving relaxor properties in ceramics increases the formation of nano-scale domains, which is directly responsible for their exceptional piezoelectric and electromechanical properties. Nano-scale domain structures are formed as a result of local structural heterogeneity caused by rare earth ion doping and the stress induced elastic field in the texture process. This research will be essential for the continued development and application of high-performance ferroelectric ceramic materials in devices.