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• The scarce positively correlated ε - E DC in PLZT antiferroelectric ceramics and its multi-field responses were analyzed. • Micro/nano structure-driven understandings were revealed by Raman and FORC test. • The nonlinear sensitivity in PLZT antiferroelectric ceramics enlightens the potential co-sensing capability of temperature and electric potential. Due to the atomic-level centrosymmetric spontaneous polarization, antiferroelectric materials exhibit a sensitively nonlinear capacitive response to plural physic fields (mainly electric field and temperature) in a certain range, consequently leading to some superb material properties, e.g., ripple suppression, electrocaloric cooling, and dielectric energy storage. However, there are many cognitive blanks about how this exotic multi-field relation ε (E DC , T) is influenced and manipulated via microscopic structures in the antiferroelectrics. In this work, the classic antiferroelectric ceramics PLZT were selected to see this intelligent effect, based on a quad-parameterized ε (E DC) relation on the dependence of T. ε relations were studied under different material compositions, temperature, frequency, AC electric field, and DC electric field, revealing lattice/domain structure evolution and the underlying mechanism. The inherent phase stability, introduced random field, and hierarchical hysteresis states were found to co-dominate this multi-field nonlinear relation. This work would not only contribute to future progress in the current applications (ripple suppression/electrocaloric cooling/dielectric energy storage) but imply the possibility of co-sensing temperature and electric potential simply and smartly. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]