Enhanced mechanical behaviour of lead zirconate titanate piezoelectric composites incorporating zinc oxide nanowhiskers

This paper reports that the lead zirconate titanate (PZT) piezoelectric composites incorporating zinc oxide nanowhiskers (ZnOw) were prepared by the conventional solid state processing. The whisker-dispersed PZT composites (PZT/ZnOw) presented a significant enhancement in the mechanical properties such as Young's modulus, tensile strength and compressive strength. Especially, the compressive strength increased from 153 MPa for the PZT to 228 MPa for the PZT/ZnOw composites. The reinforcement mechanism in strength of the composites was discussed. The mechanical quality factors of the PZT/ZnOw composites increased considerably, while the piezoelectric constants and electromechanical coupling coefficient decreased slightly. The composites with good electrical and excellent mechanical properties are promising for further applications.