
Meanwhile, the efficiency of LN surpasses that of PZT in terms of the performance index because the quality factor in the thickness mode was found to be much higher than that for PZT among the vibration modes of both LN and PZT. The efficiency of LN is generally lower than that of PZT because it has a small electromechanical coupling coefficient. In addition to PZT, lithium niobate (LN) is also known as a piezoelectric material.

Currently, the piezoelectric ceramic lead zirconate titanate (PZT) is commonly used as an atomizing transducer because PZT has a large electromechanical coupling coefficient. To improve the efficiency and miniaturization of the atomizer, considerations for the ultrasonic transducers are important.
#Nih ilift ultrasonic portable#
Therefore, a portable atomizer with high efficiency and compact size is indispensable to achieve a sufficiently humid environment on a personal scale. In the current situation of the recent pandemic caused by infectious diseases, the provision of a humid environment suited for each individual and self-medication by nebulization is needed. Regardless, individual control of each personal environment unconstrained by location has been drawing increasing attention over recent years due to the growing interest in health care. These ultrasonic atomizers are employed to humidify the entire space and inhale the atomized agent however, most ultrasonic atomizers have a limited atomization area depending on the installation location. Ultrasonic atomization is generally applied to atomizing products in general living spaces and to devices in otolaryngological treatment. Ultrasonic atomization is one of the most widely-used atomization technologies. From these observations, the study of atomization contributes to the prevention of infectious diseases. For airborne infections, the nebulization of liquid drugs to treat respiratory diseases is also effective. One popular and important countermeasure is to establish a humidified space on a daily basis to deactivate the virus. The fight against infectious diseases, such as the recent COVID-19 pandemic, is one of the primary medical concerns in the history of humankind. The obtained result suggested that the LN device is suitable for small wearable nebulizer devices. From the relationship between vibration behavior and atomization efficiency, the size of the transducer was suggested to affect the vibration mode. Moreover, the best LN size for efficient atomization was found to be 8 mm × 10 mm among the five LN device sizes used in experiments. The results showed that the peak size of water particles atomized by each device was in the range of 3.2 to 4.2 µm, which is smaller than particles produced by typical piezoelectric ceramics. Furthermore, to reveal the relationship between vibration behavior and atomization efficiency, resonance vibration in the MHz frequency band was evaluated by the finite element method and an impedance analyzer. Here, we conducted an atomization demonstration of LN devices with different sizes to evaluate particle size and atomization efficiency. However, the effect of the device area on the atomization efficiency of LN at a size suitable for mounting in wearable devices has not been studied. To miniaturize the atomization device, the transducer size needs to be small not so much as to decrease the atomization efficiency. Vibration of a lithium niobate (LN) device in the thickness mode is a promising piezoelectric method for miniaturization of atomization devices for humidity control. Although atomization devices are commonly used as a method of humidity control, at present, there are no wearable humidity control devices.


Humidity is one of the inevitable factors in the personal environment as a preventive against infectious diseases. Wearable devices are especially useful because of their controllability regardless of location. In recent years, individual control of one’s personal environment has been drawing increasing attention due to the growing interest in health care.
