Fracture Mechanisms in Lead Zirconate Titanate Ceramics

Lead Zirconate Titanate (PZT) ceramics can be formed over a wide range of PbTiO3/PbZrO3 ratios and exist in a number of crystal structures. This study involved the use of various fracture mechanics techniques to determine critical fracture toughness, KIC, as a function of composition, microstructure, temperature, and electrical and thermal history. The results of these experiments indicate that variations in KIC are related to phase transformations in the material as well as to other toughening mechanisms such as twinning and microcracking.