Textured Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-Pb(In1/2Nb1/2)O3-PbTiO3 ceramics with enhanced piezoelectric properties and high Curie temperature prepared by low-temperature sintering

A low-temperature sintering is crucial for the fabrication of multilayer piezoceramic actuators through low-cost internal metal electrodes. Herein, Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3- Pb(In1/2Nb1/2)O3 - PbTiO3 (PMN-PIN-PT) textured ceramics were prepared by a combined use of refined matrix powder and CuO sintering additive. When the matrix powder was refined by planetary ball-milling for 10 h, the sintering temperature of the textured 0.37PMN-0.29PIN-0.34PT ceramics was lowered to 1175 degrees C, and a subsequent addition of 1 mol% CuO further lowered it to 950 degrees C. The textured 0.37PMN-0.29PIN-0.34PT ceramics with 3 vol% BaTiO3 (BT) template sintered at 950 degrees C for 10 h yielded excellent piezoelectric properties, such as a Lotgering factor (LF) of 97%, a unipolar strain of 0.23% at 2 kV/mm, and a Curie temperature (TC) of 231 degrees C. These enhanced piezoelectric properties and high TC result from the high texture, transient liquid phase sintering, Cu2} ion doping, and minimum BT template content.