What thickness of the piezoelectric layer with high breakdown voltage is required for the microactuator?

Analyses of the performance of piezo-microactuators for various thicknesses of piezoelectric layers are presented. If the value of the Young's modulus of the piezoelectric layer is not more than five time less than that of nonpiezoelectric layers, to realize maximum displacement of the actuator it is better to use a piezoelectric layer as thin as possible (thickness 2-5 mum) with a high break-down electrical field property. A unimorph lead zirconate titanate (PZT)/stainless steel actuator was successfully fabricated using the aerosol deposition method (ADM) and its performance was investigated for various thicknesses of piezoelectric layers. The electrical energy consumption of actuators when they deflect with the same displacement did not strongly depend on the thickness of the piezoelectric layer. A breakdown electrical filed of more than 500 kV/cm for a lead zirconate titanate [Pb(Zr-0.52,Ti-0.48)O-3] film with thickness ranging from 2 to 80 mum was reported as well.