ABSTRACT
A piezoelectric bender is constructed from piezoelectric material that is manufac tured so that the direct and inverse piezoelectric effects occur in orthogonal direc tions. Application o f an electric field in one direction generates mechanical stress in the orthogonal directions, and application o f a mechanical strain along the latter direction generates an electrical charge in the former. A bender is typically formed by bonding a thin sheet o f this material to a substrate, as shown in Figure 11. A p plication o f an electrical charge to the PZT w i l l cause the sheet to elongate, which w i l l generate bending in the beam and displacement at the end. These actuators typically utilize either a single piezoelectric sheet bonded to a nonpiezoelectric
PZT unimorph
nonpiezo substrate
F igure 11 Piezoelectric unimorph-type actuatuor bonded to a nonpiezoelectric substrate.
