Cymbal actuator fabricated using (Na0.46K0.46Li 0.08)NbO3 lead-free piezoceramic

(Na0.46K0.46Li0.08)NbO3(NKLN8) lead-free piezoceramic was prepared by a mixed oxide route. The ceramic showed a single phase of orthorhombic perovskite structure at room temperature and a high Curie temperature of ∼430°C. A cymbal actuator using NKLN8 as the actuation element and titanium alloy as the endcaps was fabricated and characterized. A similar actuator with traditional Pb(Zr,Ti)O3(PZT) piezoceramic was also constructed for comparison. The results showed that the NKLN8 actuator has a higher fundamental resonance frequency of 107.1 kHz and a faster response of 9.3 μs with a comparable effective coupling coefficient of 0.15 at the expense of a lower strain coefficient of 1.9 nm/V. The observed actuator performance was discussed in relation to the ceramic properties.