Large scale domain switching around the tip of an impermeable stationary crack in ferroelectric ceramics driven by near-coercive electric field

It is widely accepted that the singular term plays a leading role in driving domain switching around the crack tip of ferroelectric ceramics.When an applied electric field approaches or even exceeds the coercive one,however,non-singular terms are no longer negligible and the switching of a large or global scale takes place.To analyze the large scale switching,one has to get a full asymptotic solution to the electric field in the vicinity of the crack tip.Take a double cantilever beam specimen as an example....     

原位Raman光谱技术应用于铁电陶瓷畴变与电疲劳研究

基于铁电陶瓷材料90°畴变导致Raman光谱变化的原理,自行设计并搭建了铁电材料原位测试分析和数据采集系统,通过与Raman光谱仪的联用,利用特制的样品旋转装置,从实验上证实在外加电场作用下铁电材料中的90°畴变使平均电畴的择优取向发生改变,从而导致Raman光谱强度的变化,利用铁电材料原位测试分析和数据采集系统,实现...     

Electromechanical cracking in ferroelectrics driven by large scale domain switching

Experimental results indicate three regimes for cracking in a ferroelectric double cantilever beam (DCB) under combined electromechanical loading. In the loading, the maximum amplitude of the applied electric field reaches almost twice the coercive field of ferroelectrics. Thus, the model of small scale domain switching is not applicable any more, which is dictated only by the singular term of the crack tip field. In the DCB test, a large or global scale domain switching takes place instead, which is driven...     

Higher order ferroic switching induced by scanning force microscopy.

We present the observation of ferroelastoelectric switching in a ferroelectric material. It is achieved in barium titanate thin film by simultaneously applying electric field and compressive stress with the tip of a scanning force microscope. For low compressive stresses, the presented measurements reveal classical ferroelectric domain reversal, i.e., the spontaneous polarization is aligned parallel to the applied electric field. However, for high compressive stresses the direction of polarization after switching is antiparallel to the poling field, demonstrating ferroelastoelectric switching.     

P(VDF-TrFE)铁电聚合物薄膜不对称铁电开关现象

报道了铁电聚合物薄膜中观测到的不对称铁电开关双峰现象．当薄膜被略低于其矫顽场的电场极化时可观测到铁电开关双峰,当进一步连续施加超过矫顽场的电场后这一开关双峰现象消失．用空间电荷的注入和再分布模型对这一不对称现象进行了探讨．     

Nanoscale imaging of ferroelectric domain and resistance switching in hybrid improper ferroelectric Ca3Ti2O7 thin films

Hybrid improper ferroelectrics have their electric polarization generated by two or more combined non-ferroelectric structural distortions such as the rotation and tilting of Ti-O octahedral in Ca₃Ti₂O₇ (CTO) family. In this work, we prepared different thickness CTO thin films on Pt substrates by pulsed laser deposition, and investigated their ferroelectric polarization reversal and the current transport properties by using the piezoresponse force microscopy and conducting atomic force microscopy, respectively. It is found that the CTO films exhibit clear ferroelectric domain switching and ferroelectric resistance switching behaviors, and the maximum resistive ratios of CTO film reaches ∼1750. These results demonstrate that hybrid improper ferroelectrics CTO films are promising materials for being employed in non-volatile memory and logic devices.     

Direct observation of ferroelectric domain switching in varying electric field regimes using in situ TEM

In situ Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) techniques can potentially fill in gaps in the current understanding interfacial phenomena in complex oxides. Select multiferroic oxide materials, such as BiFeO(3) (BFO), exhibit ferroelectric and magnetic order, and the two order parameters are coupled through a quantum-mechanical exchange interaction. The magneto-electric coupling in BFO allows control of the ferroelectric and magnetic domain structures via applied electric fields. Because of these unique properties, BFO and other magneto-electric multiferroics constitute a promising class of materials for incorporation into devices such as high-density ferroelectric and magnetoresistive memories, spin valves, and magnetic field sensors. The magneto-electric coupling in BFO is mediated by volatile ferroelastically switched domains that make it difficult to incorporate this material into devices. To facilitate device integration, an understanding of the microstructural factors that affect ferroelastic relaxation and ferroelectric domain switching must be developed. In this article, a method of viewing ferroelectric (and ferroelastic) domain dynamics using in situ biasing in TEM is presented. The evolution of ferroelastically switched ferroelectric domains in BFO thin films during many switching cycles is investigated. Evidence of partial domain nucleation, propagation, and switching even at applied electric fields below the estimated coercive field is revealed. Our observations indicate that the occurrence of ferroelastic relaxation in switched domains and the stability of these domains is influenced the applied field as well as the BFO microstructure. These biasing experiments provide a real time view of the complex dynamics of domain switching and complement scanning probe techniques. Quantitative information about domain switching under bias in ferroelectric and multiferroic materials can be extracted from in situ TEM to provide a predictive tool for future device development.     

多孔未极化Pb(Zr0.95Ti0.05)O3铁电陶瓷单轴压缩力学响应与相变

通过添加造孔剂的方法制备了四种不同孔隙率未极化PZT95/5铁电陶瓷. 采用非接触式的数字散斑相关性分析(digital image correltation, DIC)全场应变光学测量技术, 对多孔未极化PZT95/5 铁电陶瓷开展了单轴压缩实验研究, 讨论了孔隙率对未极化PZT95/5铁电陶瓷的力学响应与畴变、相变行为的影响. 多孔未极化PZT95/5铁电陶瓷的单轴压缩应力-应变关系呈现出类似于泡沫或蜂窝材料的三阶段变形特征, 其变形机理主要归因于畴变和相变的共同作用, 与微孔洞塌缩过程无关. 多孔未极化PZT95/5铁电陶瓷的弹性模量、压缩强度都随着孔隙率的增加而明显降低, 而孔隙率对断裂应变的影响较小. 预制的微孔洞没有改善未极化PZT95/5铁电陶瓷材料的韧性, 这是因为单轴压缩下未极化PZT95/5铁电陶瓷的断裂机理是轴向劈裂破坏, 微孔洞对劈裂裂纹传播没有起到阻碍和分叉作用. 准静态单轴压缩下多孔未极化PZT95/5铁电陶瓷畴变和相变开始的临界应力都随着孔隙率的增大而呈线性衰减, 但相变开始的临界体积应变却不依赖孔隙率.     

Investigation of domain structure of TGS single crystal after a transverse electric field by piezoresponse force microscopy

An investigation of the influence of electric field transverse to the ferroelectric axis b_HOP and parallel to c_HOP axis of triglycine sulfate (TGS) single crystal on ferroelectric domain structure was performed by piezoresponse force microscopy. To check if the applied electric field changed the dielectric properties and ferroelectric domain structure the hysteresis loop measurements were carried out as well as observations of domain structure by the liquid crystal technique. The investigation revealed existence of blocked domains in the crystal modified by the electric field TGS.     

Three‐Dimensional,Time‐Resolved Profiling of Ferroelectric Domain Wall Dynamics by Spectral‐Domain Optical Coherence Tomography

We apply here spectral‐domain optical coherence tomography (SD‐OCT) for the precise detection and temporal tracking of ferroelectric domain walls (DWs) in magnesium‐doped periodically poled lithium niobate (Mg:PPLN). We reproducibly map static DWs at an axial (depth) resolution down to ～ 0.6 μm, being located up to 0.5 mm well inside the single crystalline Mg:PPLN sample. We show that a full 3‐dimensional (3D) reconstruction of the DW geometry is possible from the collected data, when applying a special algorithm that accounts for the nonlinear optical dispersion of the material. Our OCT investigation provides valuable reference information on the DWs’ polarization charge distribution, which is known to be the key to the electrical conductivity of ferroelectric DWs in such systems. Hence, we carefully analyze the SD‐OCT signal dependence both when varying the direction of incident polarization, and when applying electrical fields along the polar axis. Surprisingly, the large backreflection intensities recorded under extraordinary polarization are not affected by any electrical field, at least for field strengths below the switching threshold, while no significant signals above noise floor are detected under ordinary polarization. Finally, we employed the high‐speed SD‐OCT setup for the real‐time DW tracking upon ferroelectric domain switching under high external fields.     

微结构对Eu掺杂Bi4Ti3O12铁电薄膜铁电性能的影响

采用金属有机物分解法在Pt/Ti/Si(111)基底上制备了退火温度分别为600℃,650℃,700℃的Bi_3.15Eu_0.85Ti₃O₁₂(BET)铁电薄膜,并对其结构及铁电性能进行了测试,再使用扫描探针显微镜对BET薄膜的电畴翻转进行了实时观测.BET薄膜c畴发生180°畴变的最小电压为+6V,而r畴由于其高四方性,即使极化电压增至+12V也不会发生翻转.薄膜的铁电性主要源于c畴的极化,随着退火温度的升高,c畴的区域面积增加,BET薄膜的剩余极化强度随之增大.退火温度为700℃的BET薄膜剩余极化强度达到84μC/cm². 关键词： 铁电薄膜 电畴翻转 扫描探针显微镜     

Response of TGS ferroelectric samples to rapid temperature impulses

Tryglicine sulphate (TGS) is one of the most extensively studied ferroelectric materials, which undergoes second order phase transition and shows the pyroelectric effect. In our present experiments we study the electric properties of TGS, in relation to domain switching, observing the samples’ response to controlled temperature pulses. The charge released in the processes of domain switching was previously studied under constant temperature growth. Our method allows us to observe the released pyroelectric charge in both the ferroelectric and paraelectric phases. To perform our experiment we designed new measurement software and constructed a novel thermostatic sample holder containing Peltier’s cells as heating/cooling elements.     

The elastic dielectric

Macroscopic field equations, boundary conditions and equations of state are derived for the non-linear, macroscopic elastic and dielectric response of an insulator. A centrosymmetric polynomial representation of order four is introduced for the energy density; the equations of state for the electric field and stress tensor are then deduced as polynomials of degree three in the displacement gradients and electric displacement field. The results are applied to the special case of m3m material symmetry.

A finite, point-charge model of a centrosymmetric ionic crystal is introduced and used to determine 0°K microscopic expressions for the electric field and stress tensor equation of state coefficients introduced in the macroscopic analysis. The results are used to calculate the full set of second and third-order non-linear coefficients for NaI, based on a Born-Mayer potential and the 4·2°K elastic stiffness data of Claytor and Marshall.     

Cold-field switching in PVDF-TrFE ferroelectric polymer nanomesas

Polarization reversal in ferroelectric nanomesas of polyvinylidene fluoride with trifluoroethylene has been probed by ultrahigh vacuum piezoresponse force microscopy in a wide temperature range from 89 to 326 K. In dramatic contrast to the macroscopic data, the piezoresponse force microscopy local switching was nonthermally activated and, at the same time, occurring at electric fields significantly lower than the intrinsic switching threshold. A "cold-field" defect-mediated extrinsic switching is shown to be an adequate scenario describing this peculiar switching behavior. The extrinsic character of the observed polarization reversal suggests that there is no fundamental bar for lowering the coercive field in ferroelectric polymer nanostructures, which is of importance for their applications in functional electronics.     

Unusual domain evolution in semiconducting ferroelectrics: A phase field study

The effect of electrical conductivity on the domain evolution of semiconducting ferroelectrics is investigated using a phase field model which includes the drift of space charges. Phase field simulations show that the tail-to-tail 90° charged domain wall appears during the domain formation in the semiconducting ferroelectrics at zero field, which is prohibited in common insulating ferroelectrics. Due to the screening of polarization charges, the domain switching takes place through the motion of head-to-head 180° charged domain wall in the semiconducting single-domain ferroelectrics subjected to an electric field. Comparing to the insulating ferroelectrics, the semiconducting ferroelectrics have a lower speed of domain evolution due to the decrease of mobility of charged domain walls. The response of semiconducting ferroelectrics to a mechanical load is also found different from that of insulating ferroelectrics.     

Effect of mechanical force on domain switching in BiFeO_3 ultrathin films

Ferroelectric polarization can be switched by an external applied electric field and may also be reversed by a mechanical force via flexoelectricity from the strain gradient.In this study,we report the mechanical writing of an epitaxial BiFeO3(BFO)thin film and the combined action of an applied mechanical force and electric field on domain switching,where the mechanical force and electric field are applied using the tip of atomic force microscopy.When the applied force exceeds the threshold value,the upward polarization of the BFO thin film can be reversed by pure mechanical force via flexoelectricity;when an electric field is simultaneously applied,the mechanical force can reduce the coercive electric field because both the piezoelectricity from the homogeneous strain and the flexoelectricity from strain gradient contribute to the internal electric field in the film.The mechanically switched domains exhibit a slightly lower surface potential when compared with that exhibited by the electrically switched domains due to no charge injection in the mechanical method.Furthermore,both the mechanically and electrically switched domains exhibit a tunneling electroresistance in the BFO ferroelectric tunnel junction.     

Ferroelectric domain breakdown

We observe a stringlike domain penetration from a ferroelectric surface deep into the crystal bulk induced by a high voltage atomic force microscope tip. The domains, which resemble channels of an electrical breakdown, nucleate under an electric field of around 10(7) V/cm at the ferroelectric surface, and grow throughout the crystal bulk where the external electric field is practically zero. A theory explaining the shape of the formed domains is presented. It shows that the driving force for the domain breakdown is the decrease of the total free energy of the system with increasing domain length.     

变宽度分割电极片状压电致动器的位移特性

针对硬磁盘驱动器中磁头定位两级伺服系统设计了一种新型压电致动器——悬臂梁式变宽度分割电极片状压电致动器.沿厚度方向极化的PZT压电陶瓷薄长片，宽度沿长度方向变化且沿长轴对称，一端固定一端自由构成悬臂梁.其上下两表面的电极均沿长轴分割成对称的两部分.施加电场使其中一半在d₃₁模式作用下伸长，而与其对称的另一半缩短，则压电片沿宽度方向产生弯曲，自由端便可产生致动位移.对该致动器的驱动电压-端部致动位移特性进行了理论分析、有限元模拟及实验验证.致动器中的电场诱导应力远小于陶瓷的抗张强度.致动器端部位移的测试结果略大于理论计算值.与现有磁头悬浮臂尺寸相近的致动器，在20—50V的电压驱动下均可获得1—2μm的致动位移.对25kTPI(track per inch)的高道密度硬磁盘，该位移已能覆盖至少一个磁道宽度，满足磁头定位两级伺服系统对第二级致动器致动位移的基本要求. 关键词：     

Anisotropic polarization response of polar nanostructures in relaxor-type lead lanthanum zirconate titanate ferroelectric ceramics

Polar nanoregions (PNRs) in relaxor-type PLZT ferroelectric ceramics and their response to the out-of-plane, in-plane electric fields were investigated by the high-resolution piezoresponse force microscopy. Anisotropic polarization switching kinetic behaviors of PNRs were found in relaxor PLZT ceramics. Normal, stable ferroelectric domain states were formed through the coalescence of PNRs in the out-of-plane field, while in the high in-plane electric field, the polarization dynamic behaviors of PNRs show spatial inhomogeneity due to the anisotropy random fields in the ferroelectric PLZT ceramics.