Effect of Radiation on Structure and Properties of Piezoelectric Materials

Piezoelectric materials are an extremely important functional materials that can be used for piezoelectric sensors, transducers and actuators due to their positive/reverse piezoelectric effects. These materials are widely used in aerospace, nuclear energy and medical fields. Among them, in the fields of aerospace and nuclear energy, piezoelectric materials have a harsh service environment of high radiation, which puts higher requirements on the radiation resistance of piezoelectric materials. This review summarized the effect of radiation on the crystal structure and electrical properties of piezoelectric materials with a perovskite structure, i.e., lead zirconate titanate (Pb(Zr, Ti)O₃), potassium niobate (KNbO₃), and barium titanate (BaTiO₃) as well as bismuth layered structure piezoelectric materials such as Bi₄Ti₃O₁₂. It is indicated that at high doses of radiation, the phase structure of piezoelectric materials is maintained in the ferroelectric phase, but the grains are damaged to some extent, while the electrical properties of piezoelectric materials generally weaken with increasing radiation doses. However, radiation can improve the fatigue resistance of piezoelectric materials, and radiation can be thus used as a promising way to modify piezoelectric materials.