The Principle of Operation and Design
All piezoelectric accelerometers operate on the same principle, a mass applies a force to a piezoelectric material (crystal or ceramic) and the subsequent stress caused on the material outputs a charge which is proportional to the force. The force is affected by the mass size as well as the acceleration level. The amount of charge output can also be affected by the amount of piezoelectric material, so high sensitivity accelerometers tend to be quite large and heavy.
There are three primary designs of accelerometer: