Mechanical Quality Factor of Lead Zirconate Titanate/Epoxy Composites

ABSTRACTThe mechanical quality factor Qm of 1–3 piezoelectric lead zirconate titanate/epoxy composites with ceramic volume fractions φ ranging from 0.18 to 0.82 has been measured. This range of φ is wider than those previously investigated by other workers. The width-to-thickness ratio of the ceramic phase is sufficiently small that there are no significant mode couplings. The observed Qm agrees well with the prediction of the parallel model. It is found that Qm increases from 34 to 100 as φ changes from 0 to 0.82 and then increases sharply to reach a high value of 600 at φ = 1. Therefore Qm can be tailored to give a wide range of values by varying φ.