Sensors 2008, 8(11), 7359-7368; doi:10.3390/s8117359
Article

Nano-Scale Characterization of a Piezoelectric Polymer (Polyvinylidene Difluoride, PVDF)

Hyungoo Lee 1 email, Rodrigo Cooper 1 email, Ke Wang 2 email and Hong Liang 1,* email
1 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843- 3123, USA 2 Department of Physics, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843-3123, USA
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 9 October 2008; in revised form: 6 November 2008 / Accepted: 12 November 2008 / Published: 18 November 2008
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Modeling, Testing and Reliability Issues in MEMS Engineering)
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Abstract: The polymer polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF) has unique piezoelectric properties favorable for Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) and Nano-Electro-Mechanical Systems (NEMS) applications. In the present research, we conducted nanometer-length scale characterization of this material using several high-resolution techniques. Specifically, we used an atomic force microscope (AFM) to study the nanoand microstructures of the PVDF under stress and to measure their nanoscale conductivity and piezoelectricity. We found that the surface morphology, electronic structure, and microstructure are profoundly affected under electrical potential. Such a behavior is important for the properties and performance of MEMS and NEMS.
Keywords: Polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF); piezoelectricity; ferroelectricity; conductivity; atomic force microscope (AFM)

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Cite This Article

MDPI and ACS Style

Lee, H.; Cooper, R.; Wang, K.; Liang, H. Nano-Scale Characterization of a Piezoelectric Polymer (Polyvinylidene Difluoride, PVDF). Sensors 2008, 8, 7359-7368.

AMA Style

Lee H, Cooper R, Wang K, Liang H. Nano-Scale Characterization of a Piezoelectric Polymer (Polyvinylidene Difluoride, PVDF). Sensors. 2008; 8(11):7359-7368.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Lee, Hyungoo; Cooper, Rodrigo; Wang, Ke; Liang, Hong. 2008. "Nano-Scale Characterization of a Piezoelectric Polymer (Polyvinylidene Difluoride, PVDF)." Sensors 8, no. 11: 7359-7368.

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