Electroceramic Actuators for Operation at Low Temperatures

Relatively large strokes are produced at temperatures between 30 and 60 K.

Electrostrictive ceramic actuators that can function at low temperatures have been developed for controlling the shapes of mirrors in the Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST). On Earth, electrostrictive ceramic actuators may be useful for fine control of the positions of objects in cryogenic laboratory apparatuses and in industrial cryogenic (including superconducting) systems.