Preparation and structure of aligned PLZT nanowires and their application in energy harvesting

Owing to their outstanding piezoelectric and electromechanical properties, Pb(ZrxTi1-x)O3 (PZT)-based materials are widely used in ultrasound transducers, capacitors and actuators. Partially substitution of La3+ for Pb2+ is considered to be an effective way to improve the piezoelectric property of PZT. Therefore, in this work, we prepared aligned (Pb0.93La0.07)(Zr0.6Ti0.4)0.9825O3 nanowires (PLZT NWs) by using traditional sol-gel-based electrospinning method. The structure and morphology of the PLZT NWs were characterized by using X-ray diffractometer, field emission scanning electron microscope, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, etc. Results showed that high-quality and well-crystallized PLZT NWs with pure perovskite structure were obtained. Based on the aligned PLZT NWs, a flexible energy harvesting device (EHD) was developed. The EHD exhibited excellent output electrical properties with the open-circuit voltage of 5 V and short-circuit current of 42 nA. The average output power achieved 3.5 μW, much higher than lead-free and PZT-based EHDs. The EHD can light up a commercial light emitting diode.