Deformation Anisotropy of Y + 128°-Cut Single Crystalline Bidomain Wafers of Lithium Niobate

Bidomain single crystals of lithium niobate (LiNbO3) and lithium tantalate (LiTaO3) are promising materials for use as actuators, mechanoelectrical transducers, and sensors capable of working in a wide temperature range. One need to take into account the anisotropy of the properties of the crystalline material when such devices are designed. In this study we investigated deformations of bidomain round shaped Y + 128°-cut wafers of lithium niobate in an external electric field. The dependences of the piezoelectric coefficients on the rotation angles were calculated for lithium niobate and lithium tantalate and plotted for the crystal cuts which are used for the formation of a bidomain ferroelectric structure. In the experiment, we utilized an external heating method and long-time annealing with the lithium out-diffusion method in order to create round bidomain lithium niobate wafers. Optical microscopy was used to obtain the dependences of the bidomain crystals’ movements on the rotation angle with central fastening and the application of an external electric field. We also modelled the shape of the deformed bidomain wafer with the suggestion that the edge movement depends on the radial distance to the fastening point quadratically. In conclusion, we revealed that the bidomain Y + 128°-cut lithium niobate wafer exhibits a saddle-like deformation when a DC electric field is applied.