Phys.org August 24, 2024
Electrostrictors, materials developing mechanical strain proportional to the square of the applied electric field, present many advantages for mechanical actuation as they convert electrical energy into mechanical, but not vice versa. Both high relative permittivity and reliance on Pb as the key component in commercial electrostrictors pose serious practical and health problems. An international team of researchers (Israel, USA – Brown University, Stony Brook University) showed that ZrxCe1-xO2 has low relative permittivity, and electromechanical properties as electrostrictors – longitudinal electrostriction strain coefficient, and relaxation frequency. They showed that the elastic dipoles in ZrxCe1-xO2 are formed only under applied anisotropic field. The local descriptors of electrostrictive strain, namely, the cation size mismatch and dynamic anharmonicity, were sufficiently versatile to guide future searches in other polycrystalline solids… read more. Open Access TECHNICAL ARTICLEÂ
Longitudinal electrostriction strain coefficient… Credit: Nature Communications volume 14, Article number: 7371, 15 November, 2023