Interaction between Electromechanical Fields and Carriers in a Multilayered Piezoelectric Semiconductor Beam

This study discusses the interaction between electromechanical fields and carriers in a multilayered ZnO beam where the c-axis of every two adjacent layers is alternately opposite along the thickness direction. A multi-field coupling model is proposed from the Timoshenko beam theory together with the phenomenological theory of piezoelectric semiconductors, including Gauss's law and the continuity equation of currents. The analytical solutions are obtained for a bent beam with different numbers of layers. Numerical results show that polarized charges occur at the interfaces between every two adjacent layers due to the opposite electromechanical coupling effects. It was found that a series of alternating potential-barrier/well structures are induced by the polarized charges, which can be used to forbid the passing of low-energy mobile charges. Moreover, it was also observed that the induced polarized charges could weaken the shielding effect of carrier redistribution. These results are useful for the design of piezotronic devices.