Low-temperature co-fired multilayer piezoelectric ceramics
This technology produces high-performance piezoelectric ceramic components — materials that convert electrical signals into precise mechanical movement and vice versa — using a manufacturing process that runs at unusually low temperatures (around 925°C). By combining two established ceramic techniques, it creates multilayer stacks with internal silver electrodes that deliver dramatically better performance than conventional ceramics: roughly 10-15 times the effective piezoelectric response, at one-third the driving voltage. The same low-temperature process also enables a combined magnetic-electric laminate structure in a single co-fired unit. The result is a more cost-effective route to high-performance actuators, ultrasonic transducers, and energy harvesters.
What you could build
Multilayer piezoelectric actuator modules or ultrasonic transducer stacks manufactured with silver inner electrodes for use in medical ultrasound probes, industrial actuators, and energy-harvesting sensors — sold to OEM device manufacturers in medical imaging, precision motion, and industrial sensing.
Who in Virginia should care
Defense and aerospace suppliers in Virginia (e.g., those serving Navy sonar or precision actuation programs in the Hampton Roads corridor) or medical device OEMs near Northern Virginia's health-tech cluster would have direct interest.
Readiness: Lab validated
Concept — described but not yet demonstrated. Lab validated — supported by experimental results in the patent. Prototype likely — the text describes a built, working embodiment.
Readiness is inferred from the patent text, not from a lab visit.
The record
- Inventors
- —
- Granted
- March 5, 2019
- Status
- Granted patent
- Patent number
- 102844
Ready to talk?
Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties handles licensing for this technology.
Prosim summaries are generated from public patent text and are not legal advice.