Photostriction of Sol–Gel Processed PLZT Ceramics

Lanthanum-modified lead zirconate titanate (PLZT) ceramic materials have gained considerable attention due to their photostriction, which is the superposition of photovoltaic and piezoelectric effects. However, the photovoltaic effect and the induced strain response are also influenced by the fabrication and processing conditions. The PLZT ceramics produced by conventional oxide mixing process exhibit moderate photostrictive properties due to the inhomogeneous distribution of impurities. In this study, ceramics of PLZT (3/52/48) doped with WO₃ and Nb₂O₅ were prepared by sol–gel technique using lead(II) acetate trihydrate, lanthanum(III) acetylacetonate hydrate, Zr, Ti, Nb, and W alkoxides. It was found that WO₃ and Nb₂O₅ were effective in suppressing the grain growth of PLZT, which lead to the enhancement of photovoltaic and photostrictive properties. Photovoltaic and photostrictive responses show ed a maximum for samples with 0.5 at% WO₃ doped sol–gel PLZT. It has been shown that the sol–gel derived PLZT ceramics with proper density possess the possibility of enhancing the photostriction over ceramics produced by conventional oxide mixing process.