Electromechanical properties of piezoelectric spiral actuators

A new type of monolithic high-displacement piezoelectric ceramic actuator with spiral geometry is described. The actuators were fabricated using a Solid Freeform Fabrication (SFF) method, Fused Deposition of Ceramics (FDC), which is capable of prototyping electroceramic components with complex shapes. The spiral actuators (3, 0.06, and 28 cm in diameter, width, and length, respectively) produced displacements of up to 1,900 μm under application of an electric field of 1.1, kV/mm. Both the displacement and resonant frequency of the spirals were tailored by changing the effective length and wall width. The blocking force of the actuators is on the order of 1 N. These properties are advantageous for high displacement-low force applications where bimorph or monomorph actuators are currently employed