Piezoelectric properties of lead-free CaBi4Ti4O15 thin films

CaBi4Ti4O15 (CBTi144) thin films are evaluated for use as lead-free thin-film piezoelectrics in microelectromechanical systems. CBTi144 thin films were prepared on Pt substrates by dip coating a precursor solution of metal alkoxides. We fabricated a piezoelectric bimorph actuator using those films and analyzed the displacement induced by the electric field. Young's modulus was measured by the vibrating-reed technique and the piezoelectric constant d(31) was derived by analysis of bending displacement and measurement of displacement-voltage curve. The measurements revealed that the CBTi144 films had a large piezoelectric constant d(31) of 32 pm/V. (C) 2004 American Institute of Physics.