Can relaxor piezoelectric materials outperform PZT?

This paper reviews the Pb(B\´B")O₃-PbTiO₃ piezoelectric material system. Among the Pb(B\´B")O₃-PbTiO₃ materials, Pb(Sc_1/2Nb _1/2)O₃-Pb(Mg_1/3Nb_2/3)O₃ -PbTiO₃ (PSN-PMN-PT) ceramic material exhibits excellent piezoelectric properties near the MPB, such as k_p>70%, k_t>54%, k₃₃>77%, d₃₃>500 pC/N, and Tc=160-260°C. The ceramic has superior piezoelectric properties as compared with conventional PZT ceramics, which so far have been thought to be the best binary piezoelectric ceramic materials. One of the big advantages of relaxor-PT systems compared with PZT is the ease with which single crystals of the MPB composition can be grown. These single crystals generally have superior properties compared with the ceramics if the appropriate axis is utilized. The advantages and disadvantages of the PSN-PMN-PT material and other Pb(B\´B")O₃-PbTiO₃ systems are compared with PZT