Single crystal growth and piezoelectric features of the Ca2Nb2O7 crystal with orthorhombic symmetry†
Abstract
Centimeter-sized Ca2Nb2O7 crystals were successfully grown using the conventional Czochralski pulling method with an optimized crystal growth technique. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies indicated that the Ca2Nb2O7 crystal belongs to the Pna21 space group with orthorhombic symmetry. The unit cell parameters were determined to be a = 26.471 Å, b = 7.688 Å, and c = 5.490 Å, while the thermal expansion coefficients were measured to be α11 = 5.83, α22 = 7.94, and α33 = 13.32 (10−6 °C−1). In addition, the ferroelectric properties of the crystal were also determined (i.e., Pr = 5.62 μC cm−1, Ec = 99.1 kV cm−1). Furthermore, simultaneous thermal analysis showed that the ferroelectric phase exists stably even when the temperature rises to 1400 °C. The full set of electro-elastic constants for the Ca2Nb2O7 crystal were determined by the resonance method, wherein the piezoelectric coefficient d33 was 8.5 pC N−1 and the electromechanical coupling factor k33 was 20.4%. As a ferroelectric crystal with a high Curie temperature, Ca2Nb2O7 exhibits a high piezoelectric coefficient, a high electromechanical coupling coefficient, and excellent potential for use in high-temperature piezoelectric sensing applications.