Springer Electromechanical Properties in Composites Based on Ferroelectrics (Engineering Materials and Processes)

This book investigates the problem of prediction and non-monotonicity of the effective electromechanical properties in two- and three-component composites based on ferroelectric ceramics and relaxor-ferroelectric single crystals. From the Back Cover Electromechanical Properties in Composites Based on Ferroelectrics discusses the latest theoretical and experimental results on the effective electromechanical (piezoelectric, dielectric and elastic) properties in piezo-composites based on ferroelectrics. For the last decades, single-crystal, bulk ceramic and thin-film ferroelectrics have found a number of various applications as a result of their remarkable piezoelectric properties. Recent work in the field of smart materials demonstrates that both ferroelectricity and piezoelectricity represent an important link between solid state science and engineering. Electromechanical Properties in Composites Based on Ferroelectrics investigates the problem of prediction and non-monotonicity of the effective electromechanical properties in different two- and three-component composites based on ferroelectric ceramics and relaxor-ferroelectric single crystals. Central to the book is the analysis of interrelations between the electromechanical constants of the components, and the description of different analytical schemes for averaging the properties of these materials with different connectivity and microgeometrical characteristics. The book not only highlights the advantages of different methods for predicting the electromechanical properties and choosing the optimum components, but also demonstrates the non-trivial behavior of specific composite architectures and their parameters which are valuable for transducer, sensor, actuator, hydroacoustic, and other applications. Electromechanical Properties in Composites Based on Ferroelectrics is a valuable resource for engineers, researchers, and postgraduate students in the field of ferroelectric, piezoelectric and related materials. This book will be of benefit to all specialists looking to understand the detailed behavior and electromechanical response of advanced composite materials. About the Author Vitaly Yuryevich Topolov is Professor of the Department of Physics at the Southern Federal University (Rostov-on-Don, Russia). His research interests include heterogeneous ferroelectrics, smart materials, domain and heterophase structures, as well as electromechanical effects in ferroelectrics and related materials. Dr. V. Yu. Topolov has been included in the list of Active Russian Scientists whose papers have been cited over 100 times in periodicals from 2000 to 2006. Christopher Rhys Bowen is a Reader at the University of Bath, UK. The research interests of Dr. C. R. Bowen are concerned with functional ceramics, including ferroelectric ceramics and composites for modern sensors and actuators, as well as with manufacturing and characterization of these materials.