Nonlinear Dynamic Bending and Domain Wall Motion in Functionally Graded Piezoelectric Actuators under AC Electric Fields: Simulation and Experiment

This paper describes the results of our numerical and experimental studies of the nonlinear bending behavior due to domain wall motion in functionally graded piezoelectric actuator under alternating current electric fields. A nonlinear three-dimensional finite element method is employed to simulate the dynamic response of cantilever functionally graded piezoelectric actuator. A phenomenological model of domain wall motion is used in computation, and the effects of ac electric field amplitude and frequency, number of layers, and property gradation on the deflection and internal stresses of the functionally graded bimorphs are examined. It is shown that the predicted deflection results, obtained from the numerical model, agree well with the corresponding experimental results.