SUMMARY

The primary focus of this research is to investigate the non-linear behavior of single crystal and ceramic relaxor ferroelectric PMN-xPT and PZN-xPT through experimentation and modeling. Characterization of single crystal and ceramic specimens with similar compositions was performed. These data give experimental insight into the differences that may arise in a ceramic due to local interaction with inhomogeneities. Single crystal specimens were characterized with a novel experimental technique that reduced clamping effects at the boundary and gave repeatable results. The measured experimental data was used in conjunction with electromechanical characterizations of other compositions of single crystal specimens with the same crystallographic orientation to study the compositional effects on material properties and phase transition behavior. Experimental characterization provided the basis for the development of a model of the continuous phase transformation behavior seen in PMN-xPT single crystals. In the modeling it was assumed that a spatial chemical and structural heterogeneity is primarily responsible for the gradual phase transformation behavior observed in relaxor ferroelectric materials. The results are used to simulate the effects of combined electrical and mechanical loading. An improved rate-independent micromechanical constitutive model based on the experimental observations of single crystal and ceramic specimens under large field loading is also presented. This model accounts for the non-linear evolution of variant volume fractions. The micromechanical model was calibrated using single crystal data. Simulations of the electromechanical behavior of ferroelectric ceramic materials are presented. These results illustrate the effects of non-linear single crystal behavior on ceramic macroscopic constitutive behavior.