Standard Product Selection

Our standard products in the catalog pages can be filtered by the following variables.  The catalog pages are structured as tables to make comparison between units easier but it can be helpful to further reduce quickly with the use of the variables.

In this Article

Piezo Material

A full comparison of the material properties we have is   available on the main site.  The table comparing PZT-5A to PZT-5J and PZT-5H is included below.  Here is a brief summary:

  • PZT-5A - is best for applications that have extreme temperatures and/or a widely varying temperature but the performance is desired to remain constant.
  • PZT-5H - has the best piezoelectric material properties but is influenced by temperature change and has a slightly reduced temperature range.
  • PZT-5J - a compromise between 5H and 5A

Mode of Operation

There are two modes of operation that are dictated by the wiring of the two piezo layers.

  • Bending - The piezos are meant to act as cantilever beams or fixed beam configurations where one piezo wafer moves out-of-phase with the other to maximize displacement / force / electrical output.
  • Extender - The piezos are meant for bonding to a surface/system as an actuator.  Can also be bonded for strain sensing or used in a fixed beam configuration for strain measurement.

The following graphic shows how the piezos work in bending mode as an actuator, forcing one piezo into tension when the other is in compression.

Mounting

  • Standard - Bare piezo wafers with no mounting features
  • Quick Mount  - A single PCB is bonded to one end of the piezo to make electrical connection and mounting easier
  • Double Quick Mount - Each end of the piezo has a PCB bonded to it for also helping with adding tip masses and/or for a fixed beam configuration
  • Sealed - The piezo layers are packaged/sealed in layers of FR4 and/or polyimide to include electrical connection and mounting holes.  More information on our packaging/sealing is available here.

Quantity Pricing

We offer volume pricing on all our standard products besides electronics and kits.  The discounts range slightly depending on the model but are roughly:

  • 40% off at quantity 5+
  • 50% off at quantity 25+
  • 60% off at quantity 100+

There are additional price breaks beyond 100 but the price starts to level out.  An example price curve vs quantity is included below for a typical 2-layer sealed bender.  Even in quantities above 10,000 units our price will typically be above $10 and close to $30 for most designs.