Three-dimensional analysis of an antiparallel piezoelectric bimorph (Q5929338)

This work is concerned with stress and deformation analysis of two identical thin piezoelectric plates which are perfectly bonded. The plates are polarised in opposite directions along their thickness. The upper and lower faces of this bimorph are covered by electrodes of negligible thickness, through which an electric potential difference is applied to the bimorph. Linear constitutive equations correspond to a piezoelectric material exhibiting 6mm symmetry. First, three-dimensional time-independent field equations are considered, and the coordinate in the thickness direction is stretched by a very small parameter representing the ratio of plate thickness to a characteristic in-plane plate dimension. Thus the resulting field equations contain a small parameter, so that asymptotic expansions of unknown quantities become feasible. The authors employ a quite convenient approach by expressing field equations in terms of matrices involving differential operators with in-plane coordinates. They show that quantities of various orders in asymptotic expansions are essentially deducible from the zeroth order lateral displacements satisfying a biharmonic equation in the plane. This approximation does not usually allow for the satisfaction of boundary conditions exactly along the edges of plates. Instead, the authors are forced to use boundary conditions in an averaged sense. The general theory is applied to a cantilever bimorph strip loaded by a concentrated moment at its free end, and subjected to a given voltage.