Electrostrictive Materials for Ultrasonic Probes in the Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3–PbTiO3 System

Electrostrictive ceramics in the Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-PbTiO3 (PMN-PT) solid solution system are investigated as the transducer material for ultrasonic probes whose electro-acoustic conversion efficiency is controlled by an applied DC bias voltage. Considering the electromechanical coupling factors induced under practical DC bias voltage and the normal using temperature, it is concluded that the most promising composition is 0.09 mole fraction of PbTiO3. A basic pulse-echo measurement confirmed that electro-acoustic conversion efficiency of an ultrasonic probe made of electrostrictive ceramics is controlled by an applied DC bias field.