NEW DEVELOPMENTS CONCERNING PIEZOELECTRIC MATERIALS WITH DEFECTS

The problem of a piezoelectric body with an elliptic cavity is revisit ed within the framework of two-dimensional electro-elasticity. In cont rast to our previous formulation, the present analysis is based on the use of exact electric boundary conditions at the rim of the hole, thu s avoiding the common assumption of electric impermeability. Expressio ns for the elastic and electric variables induced inside and outside t he cavity are derived in closed form in terms of complex potentials. C omparisons between present (exact) and previous (approximate) models a re effected to establish the limitations associated with the assumptio n of the impermeable hole, in particular when it becomes a slit crack. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd.