Compact piezoelectric stacked actuators for high power applications

Small, hollow, multilayer actuators with a diameter of 3 mm were fabricated by the stacking method from piezoelectric hard lead zirconate titanate (PZ T) ceramics. Langevin vibrators were also constructed with the hollow multi layer actuators. The performance capabilities of the actuator and Langevin vibrator samples were examined under high-power conditions. The high-power vibration level at a given sinusoidal drive voltage was significantly enhan ced by using a multilayer structure under either a nonresonance or resonanc e condition. A maximum vibration velocity of 0.17 m/sec was obtained for th e 9-layer actuator sample under nonresonance conditions. The vibration velo city was further improved with the Langevin vibrator driven at the resonanc e frequency. The temperature rise due to heat generation under high-power c onditions was the immediate limitation on the maximum accessible vibration velocity for the stacked actuators.