Abstract:
Ferroelectric ceramics have become a core medium for pulsed power devices owing to their high remanent polarization and shock-induced depolarization via structural phase transitions. This review systematically summarizes the research progress on the electrical response behaviors, theoretical models, and phase transition mechanisms of perovskite ferroelectric ceramics under shock wave loading from the 1950s to the present, with particular emphasis on the last two decades. The reviewed material systems include the lead-based lead zirconate titanate family and lead-free systems such as bismuth sodium titanate based, potassium sodium niobate based, bismuth ferrite based, and silver niobate based systems. Regarding material evolution, the transition from traditional high-performance lead-based dominance to novel lead-free systems featuring high energy density, high power density, and environmental compatibility is outlined. In terms of theoretical models, the universal evolution of discharge waveforms with shock pressure is analyzed, and the development from the constant-current source model, phase transition kinetic model, to the relaxation model is summarized, with a focused review on the "piezoelectric-ferroelectric" dual-mechanism discharge framework and the construction logic of the shock ferroelectric equation of state covering the full pressure range. Concerning physical mechanisms, the essential differences in phase transition behaviors between dynamic shock and static high-pressure loading are emphasized, and the microscopic mechanisms specifically the uniaxial stress lowering phase transition barriers and the polycrystalline orientation statistics broadening the transition window are elucidated. Finally, current limitations such as the phenomenological nature of piezoelectric models and the inadequacy of multiscale non-equilibrium simulations are identified, and future directions including machine-learning-potential molecular dynamics and texture engineering are discussed.