Fatigue crack growth experiments with DCB specimens made of PZT subjected to cyclic electrical and constant mechanical loading are evaluated from the fracture mechanical point of view. Therefore, correlations have been developed from numerical simulations with the Finite Element Method providing the electric displacement intensity factor K_IV which depends on crack length and electromechanical loading conditions. The simulations account for limited permeable crack faces and explain the observation of a dielectric crack closure effect. Fatigue crack growth is then described by a power law. To simulate ferroelectric domain switching, a numerical micromechanical model has been developed. Finite Element calculations shed light on the physical mechanisms of crack growth due to electric cycling.

Date Published: 6 April 2006
PDF: 12 pages
Proc. SPIE 6170, Smart Structures and Materials 2006: Active Materials: Behavior and Mechanics, 61700C (6 April 2006); doi: 10.1117/12.657624

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 6170:
Smart Structures and Materials 2006: Active Materials: Behavior and Mechanics
William D. Armstrong, Editor(s)