Piezoelectricity in lead zirconate titanate nanowires: A theoretical study

The piezoelectric coefficients for lead zirconate titanate (PZT) being an order of magnitude higher than the piezoelectric semiconductors, it is expected that this piezoceramic would be very promising for mechanical energy harvesting. This paper presents a systematic evaluation of the piezoelectric potential generated in charge-free PZT nanowires upon application of mechanical strain in different directions. Similar to wurtzite semiconductor nanowires, in case of PZT wires of rocksalt crystal structure, it is found that the stretching modes generate higher potential than the bending mode. However, in spite of high piezoelectric coefficients, the piezoelectric potential generated from these piezoceramic wires is much lower than the semiconductor nanowires because of their high dielectric constant. (C) 2012 American Institute of Physics. [http://dx.doi.org/ 10.1063/1.4737257]