Electrostriction is the deformation of electrical insulators due to an applied electric field. It is used to build actuators and has a high rate of response. Electrostrictive materials are different from magnetic materials and can be made from various polymers with different strain performances.
When an electric field is applied to an electrical insulator, that insulator may deform or change shape in some way. This property of the electrical insulator is called electrostriction. Specifically, electrostriction is the coupling between strain and electric field, or between strain and polarization; this coupling occurs only when an electric field is applied to the material. Electrostrictive materials can be used to build actuators, which can be used in control circuits where a small amount of force is required to actuate the circuit. These materials also react very quickly to electric fields, making them suitable for high-speed control loops.
Electrostriction occurs in some materials that are poor conductors of electric current. When a voltage differential is applied to electrostrictive materials, these materials undergo a temporary change in shape. Materials that are electrostrictive change shape due to the electrostatic attraction of free charges on the electrodes applied to the electrostrictive material.
Electrostrictive materials are different from magnetic materials in that electrostrictive materials do not reverse the direction of strain if the electric field is reversed. Unlike magnetostriction, which is linear in nature, quadratic equations must be used to calculate the forces acting in electrostriction. This nonlinear property of electrostriction allows electrostrictive materials to exhibit a reproducible strain response to electric fields without the hysteresis losses – and subsequent waste heat – that magnetic materials produce.
An electrostrictive actuator is often made from electrostrictive polymeric materials. Each polymer exhibits electrostriction differently. For example, silicone polymers may exhibit high strain performance compared to other electrostrictive polymers.
A polymer with high strain performance is better suited to an environment where mechanical deformation may be an issue than a polymer with low strain performance. Other electrostrictive polymers, such as polyurethane, are capable of producing more force under the same electrical conditions than other polymers. Such a polymer allows you to convert a greater part of the input electrical energy into mechanical work.
Electrostrictive materials have a high rate of response, often less than 10 milliseconds, when an electric field is applied to the material. Fast-response electrostrictive materials can be used in mechanical and electromechanical devices that require ultra-fast circuit response times, such as precision instruments. Electrostrictive materials are often used in mechanical applications such as microangle adjusters, oil pressure servo valves, and field tunable piezoelectric transducers.
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