Cellular polyethylene-naphthalate ferroelectrets: Foaming in supercritical carbon dioxide, structural and electrical preparation, and resulting piezoelectricity

Polymer foams with electrically charged cellular voids, the so-called ferroelectrets, are soft piezoelectric transducer materials. Several polymers such as polyethylene terephthalate or cyclo-olefin copolymers are under investigation with respect to their suitability as ferroelectrets. Here, the authors report an additional ferroelectret polymer, cellular polyethylene-naphthalate (PEN), which was prepared from commercial uniform polymer films by means of foaming in supercritical carbon dioxide, inflation, biaxial stretching, electrical charging, and metallization. Piezoelectric d33 coefficients of up to 140pC∕N demonstrate the suitability of such cellular PEN films for transducer applications. Their piezoelectricity is partially stable at elevated temperatures as high as 100°C.

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