Materials and devices for piezoelectric applications and environmental sensors

Piezoelectric devices:
Piezoelectric-related devices are widely used for energy harvesting, healthcare, and human-machine interaction applications owing to their ability to convert mechanical energy into electrical energy.

At the LTM, research focuses on enhancing the output voltage of piezoelectric nanogenerators (PNG) based on vertically integrated ZnO nanowire (ZnO NW) arrays.
For this purpose, the LTM, in collaboration with the CEA Leti and the LMGP, developed a technological field for fabricating PNGs consisting of top and bottom electrodes, a ZnO NW array integrated via chemical bath deposition, and a polymer layer encapsulating this NW matrix.

 

(a) Picture of a final ZnO NW-based PNG device along with its schematized architecture and cross-sectional FESEM image. (b) LTM home-made test bench for piezoelectric response of PNG devices. (c) Piezoelectric characterization of a PNG along with the test bench schematic (inset).

Additionally, our home-made test bench allows characterizations of the PNG's piezoelectric response under compression forces ranging from 0 to 65 N, applied at frequencies between 0.1 and 100 Hz.