Characterisation of Piezoelectric Ceramics

The IEEE standard on piezoelectricity recommends methods to determine the coefficientsof piezoelectric ceramics and the sizes of the samples to be used. A method to determine thedifference between the actual coefficients and the coefficients determined using the IEEE standardis presented. The difference or error for samples of various shapes and sizes is presented. Theseerrors and manufacturing considerations are used to make recommendations of the actual sizesof piezoceramics in various shapes to be used for material characterisation. Often, the IEEEstandard cannot be used to determine the coefficients of piezoceramics used in underwatertransducers and other devices because of their shapes and sizes. Radially polarised tubesand axially polarised rings used in hydrophones and projectors, respectively, are theexamples. A method to determine some of the complex coefficients of tubes used for qualitycontrol during production is presented. Finally, an analytical model that can be used todevelop a similar method for rings is presented. Several numerical results are presented toillustrate the methods.