Improvement in piezoelectric performance of the lead-free BiFeO3-BaTiO3 ceramics by synergistic approach

High-piezoelectric properties in lead-free materials have been the pursuit for both industry and scientific research. In this work, the synergistic approaches of phase/domain engineering and novel poling method are adopted for the improvement of piezoelectric performance. The strategically designed lead-free donor-doped BiFeO3- xBaTiO3 ceramics at the crystal structure morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) between the rhombohedral and tetragonal phases exhibited a high Curie temperature (TC >= 450 degrees C). Furthermore, si-multaneously enhanced static piezoelectric constant (d33) of 436 +/- 5 pC/N and thermally stable dynamic piezoelectric constant (d33 *) of 550 +/- 10 pm/V were achieved. The high piezoelectric performance is col-lectively attributed to the crystal structure MPB, thermal quenching effect, local structure heterogeneity induced by donor doping, mesoscale nanodomains, and novel poling method inside a magnetic field. The temperature-insensitive and high piezoelectric performance of the current work is superior to the other lead-free piezoceramics. The synergistic approach for the improvement of piezoelectricity provides a path for the development of lead-free ceramics for high-temperature commercial applications. (c) 2023 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of The editorial office of Journal of Materials Science & Technology.