The development of piezoelectric motors has spurred an interest in the vibration characteristics of plates laminated with piezoelectric materials. In particular, this paper details the study of an annular plate composed of one stainless steel lamina and either one or two piezoelectric laminae, a common configuration for piezoelectric motors. The stainless steel layer has teeth milled into the top surface for improved motor behavior. The motion of the teeth is an important characteristic of the motor's performance and is described in detail in this paper. An analytical technique is developed that determines the vibration of the laminate given the input into the piezoelectric layers, and predicts the resulting motion of the teeth. © 1997 Academic Press Limited.