| Unimorph piezoelectric cantilevers with non-traditional surface geometries were investigated by theoretical calculations, finite element models, and sample tests. The study shows the average output voltage for piezoelectric cantilevers with same length and surface area is unique, no matter what the surface shapes are. Optimization on cross section was also conducted theoretically, which indicated a trapezoidal-shaped unimorph cross section can maximize the average output voltage. Several dome-shape piezoelectric devices were fabricated using PZT-epoxy sol-gel method and deposition from spin coating techniques. The surface area was examined by AFM and SEM images. Parameters like piezoelectric coefficients d31, d33 and capacitance were investigated; their trends with increasing polling voltages were also plotted and analyzed. A novel approach to ribbon-shaped PZT device on a flexible substrate was advanced at last. |
