Piezoelectricity

Piezoelectricity is the coupling between mechanical stress and electrical polarization in certain materials. Deformation can produce voltage, while an applied electric field can produce deformation.

Direct piezoelectric effect: The generation of electrical polarization or voltage in a material subjected to mechanical stress. This is the stress-to-voltage direction of piezoelectric coupling.
Piezoelectric sensor: A sensor that uses stress-induced electrical charge to detect force, pressure, vibration, or acceleration. Mechanical input becomes an electrical signal through the direct effect.
Crystal system: A classification of crystals based on the symmetry of their unit cells. Crystal symmetry determines whether a material's structure permits piezoelectricity.
Pyroelectricity: The change in a material's electric polarization caused by a change in temperature. Temperature, rather than mechanical stress, drives its primary electrical response.
Pierre Curie: A French physicist who studied crystallography, magnetism, and radioactivity with Marie Curie. He and Jacques Curie experimentally discovered the direct piezoelectric effect.
Converse piezoelectric effect: The deformation of a piezoelectric material in response to an applied electric field. This is the voltage-to-motion direction of the same coupling.
Piezoelectric actuator: A device that uses electrically induced deformation to produce controlled mechanical motion. The converse effect enables fine positioning and rapid movement.
Point group: A set of symmetry operations that leave at least one point of a crystal unchanged. The 32 crystallographic point groups identify which crystal classes can be piezoelectric.
Triboelectric effect: The transfer of electric charge between materials after contact and separation or friction. It can generate voltage during motion without the crystal coupling that defines piezoelectricity.
Jacques Curie: A French physicist whose work with Pierre Curie included the discovery of piezoelectricity. Their experiments showed that pressure could produce electrical charge in selected crystals.

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