Enhanced piezoelectric property and microstructure of large CaZrO3-doped Na0.5K0.5NbO3-based single crystal with 20Â mm over

CaZrO3(CZ)-doped Na0.5K0.5NbO3(NKN)-based single crystals with 20 mm over were prepared by a seed-free solid-state crystal growth (SFSSCG) method. The microstructure, piezoelectric and dielectric properties of the crystal were investigated. The results show that the piezoelectric constant d33 of this crystal is evidently enhanced up to 488 pC/N with the addition of CZ. Two dielectric anomalies appear at 391 and 149 °C, corresponding to the tetragonal → cubic and orthorhombic → tetragonal phase transition, respectively. There exists two domains (90° and 180°) in the crystal. These results show that this NKN-based crystal is a promising lead-free piezoelectric material for applications.