Ferroelectricity in undoped hafnium oxide

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Polakowski, Patrick; Müller, Johannes

2015-01-01

We report the observation of ferroelectric characteristics in undoped hafnium oxide thin films in a thickness range of 4–20 nm. The undoped films were fabricated using atomic layer deposition (ALD) and embedded into titanium nitride based metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitors for electrical evaluation. Structural as well as electrical evidence for the appearance of a ferroelectric phase in pure hafnium oxide was collected with respect to film thickness and thermal budget applied during titanium nitride electrode formation. Using grazing incidence X-Ray diffraction (GIXRD) analysis, we observed an enhanced suppression of the monoclinic phase fraction in favor of an orthorhombic, potentially, ferroelectric phase with decreasing thickness/grain size and for a titanium nitride electrode formation below crystallization temperature. The electrical presence of ferroelectricity was confirmed using polarization measurements. A remanent polarization P r of up to 10 μC cm −2 as well as a read/write endurance of 1.6 × 10 5 cycles was measured for the pure oxide. The experimental results reported here strongly support the intrinsic nature of the ferroelectric phase in hafnium oxide and expand its applicability beyond the doped systems

Resonant tunneling across a ferroelectric domain wall

Science.gov (United States)

Li, M.; Tao, L. L.; Velev, J. P.; Tsymbal, E. Y.

2018-04-01

Motivated by recent experimental observations, we explore electron transport properties of a ferroelectric tunnel junction (FTJ) with an embedded head-to-head ferroelectric domain wall, using first-principles density-functional theory calculations. We consider a FTJ with L a0.5S r0.5Mn O3 electrodes separated by a BaTi O3 barrier layer and show that an in-plane charged domain wall in the ferroelectric BaTi O3 can be induced by polar interfaces. The resulting V -shaped electrostatic potential profile across the BaTi O3 layer creates a quantum well and leads to the formation of a two-dimensional electron gas, which stabilizes the domain wall. The confined electronic states in the barrier are responsible for resonant tunneling as is evident from our quantum-transport calculations. We find that the resonant tunneling is an orbital selective process, which leads to sharp spikes in the momentum- and energy-resolved transmission spectra. Our results indicate that domain walls embedded in FTJs can be used to control the electron transport.

Chemically synthesized metal-oxide-metal segmented nanowires with high ferroelectric response

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Herderick, Edward D; Padture, Nitin P [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Center for Emergent Materials, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210 (United States); Polomoff, Nicholas A; Huey, Bryan D, E-mail: padture.1@osu.edu [Department of Chemical, Materials, and Biomolecular Engineering, Institute of Materials Science, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269 (United States)

2010-08-20

A chemical synthesis method is presented for the fabrication of high-definition segmented metal-oxide-metal (MOM) nanowires in two different ferroelectric oxide systems: Au-BaTiO{sub 3}-Au and Au-PbTiO{sub 3}-Au. This method entails electrodeposition of segmented nanowires of Au-TiO{sub 2}-Au inside anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) templates, followed by topotactic hydrothermal conversion of the TiO{sub 2} segments into BaTiO{sub 3} or PbTiO{sub 3} segments. Two-terminal devices from individual MOM nanowires are fabricated, and their ferroelectric properties are measured directly, without the aid of scanning probe microscopy (SPM) methods. The MOM nanowire architecture provides high-quality end-on electrical contacts to the oxide segments, and allows direct measurement of properties of nanoscale volume, strain-free oxide segments. Unusually high ferroelectric responses, for chemically synthesized oxides, in these MOM nanowires are reported, and are attributed to the lack of residual strain in the oxides. The ability to measure directly the active properties of nanoscale volume, strain-free oxides afforded by the MOM nanowire architecture has important implications for fundamental studies of not only ferroelectric nanostructures but also nanostructures in the emerging field of multiferroics.

Giant electrode effect on tunnelling electroresistance in ferroelectric tunnel junctions.

Science.gov (United States)

Soni, Rohit; Petraru, Adrian; Meuffels, Paul; Vavra, Ondrej; Ziegler, Martin; Kim, Seong Keun; Jeong, Doo Seok; Pertsev, Nikolay A; Kohlstedt, Hermann

2014-11-17

Among recently discovered ferroelectricity-related phenomena, the tunnelling electroresistance (TER) effect in ferroelectric tunnel junctions (FTJs) has been attracting rapidly increasing attention owing to the emerging possibilities of non-volatile memory, logic and neuromorphic computing applications of these quantum nanostructures. Despite recent advances in experimental and theoretical studies of FTJs, many questions concerning their electrical behaviour still remain open. In particular, the role of ferroelectric/electrode interfaces and the separation of the ferroelectric-driven TER effect from electrochemical ('redox'-based) resistance-switching effects have to be clarified. Here we report the results of a comprehensive study of epitaxial junctions comprising BaTiO(3) barrier, La(0.7)Sr(0.3)MnO(3) bottom electrode and Au or Cu top electrodes. Our results demonstrate a giant electrode effect on the TER of these asymmetric FTJs. The revealed phenomena are attributed to the microscopic interfacial effect of ferroelectric origin, which is supported by the observation of redox-based resistance switching at much higher voltages.

Innovative architectures in ferroelectric multi-materials: Chemistry, interfaces and strain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

C. Elissalde

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Breakthroughs can be expected in multi-component ceramics by adjusting the phase assembly and the micro–nanostructure. Controlling the architecture of multi-materials at different scales is still challenging and provides a great opportunity to broaden the range of functionalities in the field of ferroelectric-based ceramics. We used the potentialities of Spark Plasma Sintering (SPS to control a number of key parameters regarding the properties: anisotropy, interfaces, grain size and strain effects. The flexibility of the wet and supercritical chemistry routes associated with the versatility of SPS allowed designing new ferroelectric composite ceramics at different scales. These approaches are illustrated through various examples based on our work on ferroelectric/dielectric composites.

Theoretical study of ferroelectric nanoparticles using phase reconstructed electron microscopy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Phatak, C.; Petford-Long, A. K.; Beleggia, Marco

2014-01-01

Ferroelectric nanostructures are important for a variety of applications in electronic and electro-optical devices, including nonvolatile memories and thin-film capacitors. These applications involve stability and switching of polarization using external stimuli, such as electric fields. We prese...

Nanostructured piezoelectric energy harvesters

CERN Document Server

Briscoe, Joe

2014-01-01

This book covers a range of devices that use piezoelectricity to convert mechanical deformation into electrical energy and relates their output capabilities to a range of potential applications. Starting with a description of the fundamental principles and properties of piezo- and ferroelectric materials, where applications of bulk materials are well established, the book shows how nanostructures of these materials are being developed for energy harvesting applications. The authors show how a nanostructured device can be produced, and put in context some of the approaches that are being invest

Fabricating ordered functional nanostructures onto polycrystalline substrates from the bottom-up

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Torres, María; Pardo, Lorena; Ricote, Jesús; Fuentes-Cobas, Luís E.; Rodriguez, Brian J.; Calzada, M. Lourdes

2012-01-01

Microemulsion-mediated synthesis has emerged as a powerful bottom-up procedure for the preparation of ferroelectric nanostructures onto substrates. However, periodical order has yet to be achieved onto polycrystalline Pt-coated Si substrates. Here, we report a new methodology that involves microemulsion-mediated synthesis and the controlled modification of the surface of the substrate by coating it with a template-layer of water-micelles. This layer modifies the surface tension of the substrate and yields a periodic arrangement of ferroelectric crystalline nanostructures. The size of the nanostructures is decreased to the sub-50 nm range and they show a hexagonal order up to the third neighbors, which corresponds to a density of 275 Gb in −2 . The structural analysis of the nanostructures by synchrotron X-ray diffraction confirms that the nanostructures have a PbTiO 3 perovskite structure, with lattice parameters of a = b = 3.890(0) Å and c = 4.056(7) Å. Piezoresponse force microscopy confirmed the ferro-piezoelectric character of the nanostructures. This simple methodology is valid for the self-assembly of other functional oxides onto polycrystalline substrates, enabling their reliable integration into micro/nano devices.

Giant Electrocaloric Effect in Ferroelectrics with Tailored Polaw-Nanostructures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Qiming [Pennsylvania State Univ., University Park, PA (United States)

2015-06-24

Electrocaloric effect (ECE) is the temperature and/or entropy change in a dielectric material caused by an electric field induced polarization change. Although ECE has been studied since 1930s, the very small ECE observed in earlier studies in bulk materials before 2007 makes it not attractive for practical cooling applications. The objectives of this DOE program are to carry out a systematical scientific research on the entropy change and ECE in polar-dielectrics, especially ferroelectrics based on several fundamental hypotheses and to search for answers on a few scientific questions. Especially, this research program developed a series of polar-dielectric materials with controlled nano- and meso-structures and carried out studies on how these structures affect the polar-ordering, correlations, energy landscapes, and consequently the entropy states at different phases and ECE. The key hypotheses of the program include: (i) Whether a large ECE can be obtained near the ferroelectric-paraelectric (FE-PE) transition in properly designed ferroelectrics which possess large polarization P and large ß (the coefficient in the thermodynamic Landau theory where the Gibbs free energy G = G = G₀+ ½ a P² +1/4 b P⁴ + 1/6 c P⁶ – EP, and a = ß (T-T_c), where b,c,ß and Tc are constants)? (ii) What determines/determine ß? Whether a ferroelectric material with built-in disorders, which disrupt the polar-correlations and enabling a large number of local polar-states, such as a properly designed ferroelectric relaxor, can achieve a large ECE? (iii) How to design a ferroelectric material which has flat energy landscape so that the energy barriers for switching among different phases are vanishingly small? What are the necessary conditions to maximize the number of coexisting phases? (iv) How to design ferroelectric materials with a large tunable dielectric response? That is, at zero electric field, the material possesses very

Theoretical study of ferroelectric nanoparticles using phase reconstructed electron microscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Phatak, C.; Petford-Long, A. K.; Beleggia, M.; De Graef, M.

2014-06-01

Ferroelectric nanostructures are important for a variety of applications in electronic and electro-optical devices, including nonvolatile memories and thin-film capacitors. These applications involve stability and switching of polarization using external stimuli, such as electric fields. We present a theoretical model describing how the shape of a nanoparticle affects its polarization in the absence of screening charges, and quantify the electron-optical phase shift for detecting ferroelectric signals with phase-sensitive techniques in a transmission electron microscope. We provide an example phase shift computation for a uniformly polarized prolate ellipsoid with varying aspect ratio in the absence of screening charges.

Ferroelectric Zinc Oxide Nanowire Embedded Flexible Sensor for Motion and Temperature Sensing.

Science.gov (United States)

Shin, Sung-Ho; Park, Dae Hoon; Jung, Joo-Yun; Lee, Min Hyung; Nah, Junghyo

2017-03-22

We report a simple method to realize multifunctional flexible motion sensor using ferroelectric lithium-doped ZnO-PDMS. The ferroelectric layer enables piezoelectric dynamic sensing and provides additional motion information to more precisely discriminate different motions. The PEDOT:PSS-functionalized AgNWs, working as electrode layers for the piezoelectric sensing layer, resistively detect a change of both movement or temperature. Thus, through the optimal integration of both elements, the sensing limit, accuracy, and functionality can be further expanded. The method introduced here is a simple and effective route to realize a high-performance flexible motion sensor with integrated multifunctionalities.

Surface-screening mechanisms in ferroelectric thin films and their effect on polarization dynamics and domain structures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kalinin, Sergei V.; Kim, Yunseok; Fong, Dillon D.; Morozovska, Anna N.

2018-01-25

For over 70 years, ferroelectric materials have been one of the central research topics for condensed matter physics and material science, an interest driven both by fundamental science and applications. However, ferroelectric surfaces, the key component of ferroelectric films and nanostructures, still present a significant theoretical and even conceptual challenge. Indeed, stability of ferroelectric phase per se necessitates screening of polarization charge. At surfaces, this can lead to coupling between ferroelectric and semiconducting properties of material, or with surface (electro) chemistry, going well beyond classical models applicable for ferroelectric interfaces. In this review, we summarize recent studies of surface-screening phenomena in ferroelectrics. We provide a brief overview of the historical understanding of the physics of ferroelectric surfaces, and existing theoretical models that both introduce screening mechanisms and explore the relationship between screening and relevant aspects of ferroelectric functionalities starting from phase stability itself. Given that the majority of ferroelectrics exist in multiple-domain states, we focus on local studies of screening phenomena using scanning probe microscopy techniques. We discuss recent studies of static and dynamic phenomena on ferroelectric surfaces, as well as phenomena observed under lateral transport, light, chemical, and pressure stimuli. We also note that the need for ionic screening renders polarization switching a coupled physical-electrochemical process and discuss the non-trivial phenomena such as chaotic behavior during domain switching that stem from this.

Surface-screening mechanisms in ferroelectric thin films and their effect on polarization dynamics and domain structures

Science.gov (United States)

Kalinin, Sergei V.; Kim, Yunseok; Fong, Dillon D.; Morozovska, Anna N.

2018-03-01

For over 70 years, ferroelectric materials have been one of the central research topics for condensed matter physics and material science, an interest driven both by fundamental science and applications. However, ferroelectric surfaces, the key component of ferroelectric films and nanostructures, still present a significant theoretical and even conceptual challenge. Indeed, stability of ferroelectric phase per se necessitates screening of polarization charge. At surfaces, this can lead to coupling between ferroelectric and semiconducting properties of material, or with surface (electro) chemistry, going well beyond classical models applicable for ferroelectric interfaces. In this review, we summarize recent studies of surface-screening phenomena in ferroelectrics. We provide a brief overview of the historical understanding of the physics of ferroelectric surfaces, and existing theoretical models that both introduce screening mechanisms and explore the relationship between screening and relevant aspects of ferroelectric functionalities starting from phase stability itself. Given that the majority of ferroelectrics exist in multiple-domain states, we focus on local studies of screening phenomena using scanning probe microscopy techniques. We discuss recent studies of static and dynamic phenomena on ferroelectric surfaces, as well as phenomena observed under lateral transport, light, chemical, and pressure stimuli. We also note that the need for ionic screening renders polarization switching a coupled physical–electrochemical process and discuss the non-trivial phenomena such as chaotic behavior during domain switching that stem from this. ).

Directly patternable high refractive index ferroelectric sol–gel resist

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Garoli, D., E-mail: denis.garoli@iit.it [Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 16, 16136 Genova (Italy); Della Giustina, G. [Industrial Engineering Department, University of Padova and INSTM, Via Marzolo 9, 35131 Padova (Italy)

2015-08-15

The development of a ferroelectric negative tone sol–gel resist for Ultraviolet (UV) and Electron Beam (EB) lithography is presented. A new system based on Lead Zirconate Titanate (PZT, with formula PbZr{sub 0.52}Ti{sub 0.48}O{sub 3}) was synthesized by sol–gel method. The lithographic performances were investigated and several structures spanning from the micron range down to less than 50 nm have been achieved by UV and EB lithography. The system interaction with UV light and Electron beam was thoroughly characterized by FT-IT spectroscopy. The exposed PZT was annealed at high temperatures in order to study the crystalline phase evolution, the optical constants values and stability of patterned structures. After exposure and annealing, the refractive index of the material can vary from 1.68 up to 2.33 (@400 nm), while the ferroelectric behaviour seems to be maintained after high temperature annealing. These results suggest a possible application of PZT resist not only as ferroelectric but also as nanopatternable high refractive index material. Moreover, direct nanopatterning by means of Focused Ion Beam (FIB) lithography was verified and the potentiality for the preparation of high aspect ratio hollow nanostructures will be presented. - Highlights: • A new formula directly patternable PZT high refractive index resist is presented. • The gel is sensitive to both UV and electron beam exposure. • The refractive index can vary from 1.68 up to 2.33 (@400 nm). • Direct nanopatterning by means of Focused Ion Beam (FIB) lithography was verified. • High aspect ratio hollow nanostructures will be presented.

Multifunctional BiFeO{sub 3}/TiO{sub 2} nano-heterostructure: Photo-ferroelectricity, rectifying transport, and nonvolatile resistive switching property

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sarkar, Ayan; Khan, Gobinda Gopal, E-mail: gobinda.gk@gmail.com [Centre for Research in Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, University of Calcutta, Technology Campus, Block JD2, Sector III, Salt Lake City, Kolkata 700 098 (India); Chaudhuri, Arka [Department of Condensed Matter Physics and Material Sciences, S. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, Block JD, Sector III, Salt Lake City, Kolkata 700 098 (India); Department of Applied Science, Haldia Institute of Technology, Haldia 721657, Purba Medinipur, West Bengal (India); Das, Avishek [Department of Electronic Science, University of Calcutta, 92 APC Road, Kolkata 700009 (India); Mandal, Kalyan [Department of Condensed Matter Physics and Material Sciences, S. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, Block JD, Sector III, Salt Lake City, Kolkata 700 098 (India)

2016-01-18

Multifunctional BiFeO{sub 3} nanostructure anchored TiO{sub 2} nanotubes are fabricated by coupling wet chemical and electrochemical routes. BiFeO{sub 3}/TiO{sub 2} nano-heterostructure exhibits white-light-induced ferroelectricity at room temperature. Studies reveal that the photogenerated electrons trapped at the domain/grain boundaries tune the ferroelectric polarization in BiFeO{sub 3} nanostructures. The photon controlled saturation and remnant polarization opens up the possibility to design ferroelectric devices based on BiFeO{sub 3.} The nano-heterostructure also exhibits substantial photovoltaic effect and rectifying characteristics. Photovoltaic property is found to be correlated with the ferroelectric polarization. Furthermore, the nonvolatile resistive switching in BiFeO{sub 3}/TiO{sub 2} nano-heterostructure has been studied, which demonstrates that the observed resistive switching is most likely caused by the electric-field-induced carrier injection/migration and trapping/detrapping process at the hetero-interfaces. Therefore, BiFeO{sub 3}/TiO{sub 2} nano-heterostructure coupled with logic, photovoltaics and memory characteristics holds promises for long-term technological applications in nanoelectronics devices.

Ferroelectric transistors with monolayer molybdenum disulfide and ultra-thin aluminum-doped hafnium oxide

Science.gov (United States)

Yap, Wui Chung; Jiang, Hao; Liu, Jialun; Xia, Qiangfei; Zhu, Wenjuan

2017-07-01

In this letter, we demonstrate ferroelectric memory devices with monolayer molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) as the channel material and aluminum (Al)-doped hafnium oxide (HfO2) as the ferroelectric gate dielectric. Metal-ferroelectric-metal capacitors with 16 nm thick Al-doped HfO2 are fabricated, and a remnant polarization of 3 μC/cm2 under a program/erase voltage of 5 V is observed. The capability of potential 10 years data retention was estimated using extrapolation of the experimental data. Ferroelectric transistors based on embedded ferroelectric HfO2 and MoS2 grown by chemical vapor deposition are fabricated. Clockwise hysteresis is observed at low program/erase voltages due to slow bulk traps located near the 2D/dielectric interface, while counterclockwise hysteresis is observed at high program/erase voltages due to ferroelectric polarization. In addition, the endurances of the devices are tested, and the effects associated with ferroelectric materials, such as the wake-up effect and polarization fatigue, are observed. Reliable writing/reading in MoS2/Al-doped HfO2 ferroelectric transistors over 2 × 104 cycles is achieved. This research can potentially lead to advances of two-dimensional (2D) materials in low-power logic and memory applications.

Prediction of Intrinsic Ferromagnetic Ferroelectricity in a Transition-Metal Halide Monolayer

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Chengxi; Du, Yongping; Wu, Haiping; Xiang, Hongjun; Deng, Kaiming; Kan, Erjun

2018-04-01

The realization of multiferroics in nanostructures, combined with a large electric dipole and ferromagnetic ordering, could lead to new applications, such as high-density multistate data storage. Although multiferroics have been broadly studied for decades, ferromagnetic ferroelectricity is rarely explored, especially in two-dimensional (2D) systems. Here we report the discovery of 2D ferromagnetic ferroelectricity in layered transition-metal halide systems. On the basis of first-principles calculations, we reveal that a charged CrBr3 monolayer exhibits in-plane multiferroicity, which is ensured by the combination of orbital and charge ordering as realized by the asymmetric Jahn-Teller distortions of octahedral Cr - Br6 units. As an example, we further show that (CrBr3)2Li is a ferromagnetic ferroelectric multiferroic. The explored phenomena and mechanism of multiferroics in this 2D system not only are useful for fundamental research in multiferroics but also enable a wide range of applications in nanodevices.

Synergistically Enhanced Performance of Ultrathin Nanostructured Silicon Solar Cells Embedded in Plasmonically Assisted, Multispectral Luminescent Waveguides

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Sung-Min; Dhar, Purnim; Chen, Huandong; Montenegro, Angelo; Liaw, Lauren; Kang, Dongseok; Gai, Boju; Benderskii, Alexander V.; Yoon, Jongseung

2017-04-12

Ultrathin silicon solar cells fabricated by anisotropic wet chemical etching of single-crystalline wafer materials represent an attractive materials platform that could provide many advantages for realizing high-performance, low-cost photovoltaics. However, their intrinsically limited photovoltaic performance arising from insufficient absorption of low-energy photons demands careful design of light management to maximize the efficiency and preserve the cost-effectiveness of solar cells. Herein we present an integrated flexible solar module of ultrathin, nanostructured silicon solar cells capable of simultaneously exploiting spectral upconversion and downshifting in conjunction with multispectral luminescent waveguides and a nanostructured plasmonic reflector to compensate for their weak optical absorption and enhance their performance. The 8 μm-thick silicon solar cells incorporating a hexagonally periodic nanostructured surface relief are surface-embedded in layered multispectral luminescent media containing organic dyes and NaYF4:Yb3+,Er3+ nanocrystals as downshifting and upconverting luminophores, respectively, via printing-enabled deterministic materials assembly. The ultrathin nanostructured silicon microcells in the composite luminescent waveguide exhibit strongly augmented photocurrent (~40.1 mA/cm2) and energy conversion efficiency (~12.8%) than devices with only a single type of luminescent species, owing to the synergistic contributions from optical downshifting, plasmonically enhanced upconversion, and waveguided photon flux for optical concentration, where the short-circuit current density increased by ~13.6 mA/cm2 compared with microcells in a nonluminescent medium on a plain silver reflector under a confined illumination.

Tailoring the optical constants in single-crystal silicon with embedded silver nanostructures for advanced silicon photonics applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akhter, Perveen; Huang, Mengbing; Spratt, William; Kadakia, Nirag; Amir, Faisal

2015-01-01

Plasmonic effects associated with metal nanostructures are expected to hold the key to tailoring light emission/propagation and harvesting solar energy in materials including single crystal silicon which remains the backbone in the microelectronics and photovoltaics industries but unfortunately, lacks many functionalities needed for construction of advanced photonic and optoelectronics devices. Currently, silicon plasmonic structures are practically possible only in the configuration with metal nanoparticles or thin film arrays on a silicon surface. This does not enable one to exploit the full potential of plasmonics for optical engineering in silicon, because the plasmonic effects are dominant over a length of ∼50 nm, and the active device region typically lies below the surface much beyond this range. Here, we report on a novel method for the formation of silver nanoparticles embedded within a silicon crystal through metal gettering from a silver thin film deposited at the surface to nanocavities within the Si created by hydrogen ion implantation. The refractive index of the Ag-nanostructured layer is found to be 3–10% lower or higher than that of silicon for wavelengths below or beyond ∼815–900 nm, respectively. Around this wavelength range, the optical extinction values increase by a factor of 10–100 as opposed to the pure silicon case. Increasing the amount of gettered silver leads to an increased extinction as well as a redshift in wavelength position for the resonance. This resonance is attributed to the surface plasmon excitation of the resultant silver nanoparticles in silicon. Additionally, we show that the profiles for optical constants in silicon can be tailored by varying the position and number of nanocavity layers. Such silicon crystals with embedded metal nanostructures would offer novel functional base structures for applications in silicon photonics, optoelectronics, photovoltaics, and plasmonics

Correlation of electron backscatter diffraction and piezoresponse force microscopy for the nanoscale characterization of ferroelectric domains in polycrystalline lead zirconate titanate

Science.gov (United States)

Burnett, T. L.; Weaver, P. M.; Blackburn, J. F.; Stewart, M.; Cain, M. G.

2010-08-01

The functional properties of ferroelectric ceramic bulk or thin film materials are strongly influenced by their nanostructure, crystallographic orientation, and structural geometry. In this paper, we show how, by combining textural analysis, through electron backscattered diffraction, with piezoresponse force microscopy, quantitative measurements of the piezoelectric properties can be made at a scale of 25 nm, smaller than the domain size. The combined technique is used to obtain data on the domain-resolved effective single crystal piezoelectric response of individual crystallites in Pb(Zr0.4Ti0.6)O3 ceramics. The results offer insight into the science of domain engineering and provide a tool for the future development of new nanostructured ferroelectric materials for memory, nanoactuators, and sensors based on magnetoelectric multiferroics.

Engineering Nano-Structured Multiferroic Thin Films

Science.gov (United States)

Cheung, Pui Lam

Multiferroics exhibit remarkable tunabilities in their ferromagnetic, ferroelectric and magnetoelectric properties that provide the potential in enabling the control of magnetizations by electric field for the next generation non-volatile memories, antennas and motors. In recent research and developments in integrating single-phase ferroelectric and ferromagnetic materials, multiferroic composite demonstrated a promising magnetoelectric (ME) coupling for future applications. Atomic layer deposition (ALD) technique, on the other hand, allows fabrications of complex multiferroic nanostructures to investigate interfacial coupling between the two materials. In this work, radical-enhanced ALD of cobalt ferrite (CFO) and thermal ALD of lead zirconate titanate (PZT) were combined in fabricating complex multiferroic architectures in investigating the effect of nanostructuring and magnetic shape anisotropy on improving ME coupling. In particular, 1D CFO nanotubes and nanowires; 0D-3D CFO/PZT mesoporous composite; and 1D-1D CFO/PZT core-shell nanowire composite were studied. The potential implementation of nanostructured multiferroic composites into functioning devices was assessed by quantifying the converse ME coupling coefficient. The synthesis of 1D CFO nanostructures was realized by ALD of CFO in anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) membranes. This work provided a simple and inexpensive route to create parallel and high aspect ratio ( 55) magnetic nanostructures. The change in magnetic easy axis of (partially filled) CFO nanotubes from perpendicular to parallel in (fully-filled) nanowires indicated the significance of the geometric factor in controlling magnetizations and ME coupling. The 0D-3D CFO/PZT mesoporous composite demonstrated the optimizations of the strain transfer could be achieved by precise thickness control. 100 nm of mesoporous PZT was synthesized on Pt/TiOx/SiO2/Si using amphiphilic diblock copolymers as a porous ferroelectric template (10 nm pore diameter) for

p-n Junction Dynamics Induced in a Graphene Channel by Ferroelectric-Domain Motion in the Substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kurchak, Anatolii I.; Eliseev, Eugene A.; Kalinin, Sergei V.; Strikha, Maksym V.; Morozovska, Anna N.

2017-01-01

The p - n junction dynamics induced in a graphene channel by stripe-domain nucleation, motion, and reversal in a ferroelectric substrate is explored using a self-consistent approach based on Landau-Ginzburg-Devonshire phenomenology combined with classical electrostatics. Relatively low gate voltages are required to induce the hysteresis of ferroelectric polarization and graphene charge in response to the periodic gate voltage. Pronounced nonlinear hysteresis of graphene conductance with a wide memory window corresponds to high amplitudes of gate voltage. Also, we reveal the extrinsic size effect in the dependence of the graphene-channel conductivity on its length. We predict that the top-gate–dielectric-layer–graphene-channel–ferroelectric-substrate nanostructure considered here can be a promising candidate for the fabrication of the next generation of modulators and rectifiers based on the graphene p - n junctions.

Impact of nanoconfinement on the diisopropylammonium chloride (C6H16ClN) organic ferroelectric

Science.gov (United States)

Baryshnikov, S. V.; Charnaya, E. V.; Milinskiy, A. Yu.; Parfenov, V. A.; Egorova, I. V.

2018-03-01

The dielectric studies of diisopropylammonium chloride (DIPAC) nanoparticles embedded into opal and MCM-41 silica matrices are presented. It is shown that the ferroelectric phase transition shifts to low temperatures and broadens for DIPAC within the opal pores compared to bulk. The thermal hysteresis of the transition increases under opal nanoconfinement. No anomalies of the permittivity relevant to the ferroelectric transition are observed for DIPAC within the MCM-41 molecular sieves likely due to formation of the amorphous phase.

Silicon-doped hafnium oxide anti-ferroelectric thin films for energy storage

Science.gov (United States)

Ali, Faizan; Liu, Xiaohua; Zhou, Dayu; Yang, Xirui; Xu, Jin; Schenk, Tony; Müller, Johannes; Schroeder, Uwe; Cao, Fei; Dong, Xianlin

2017-10-01

Motivated by the development of ultracompact electronic devices as miniaturized energy autonomous systems, great research efforts have been expended in recent years to develop various types of nano-structural energy storage components. The electrostatic capacitors characterized by high power density are competitive; however, their implementation in practical devices is limited by the low intrinsic energy storage density (ESD) of linear dielectrics like Al2O3. In this work, a detailed experimental investigation of energy storage properties is presented for 10 nm thick silicon-doped hafnium oxide anti-ferroelectric thin films. Owing to high field induced polarization and slim double hysteresis, an extremely large ESD value of 61.2 J/cm3 is achieved at 4.5 MV/cm with a high efficiency of ˜65%. In addition, the ESD and the efficiency exhibit robust thermal stability in 210-400 K temperature range and an excellent endurance up to 109 times of charge/discharge cycling at a very high electric field of 4.0 MV/cm. The superior energy storage performance together with mature technology of integration into 3-D arrays suggests great promise for this recently discovered anti-ferroelectric material to replace the currently adopted Al2O3 in fabrication of nano-structural supercapacitors.

Matrix-assisted energy conversion in nanostructured piezoelectric arrays

Science.gov (United States)

Sirbuly, Donald J.; Wang, Xianying; Wang, Yinmin

2013-01-01

A nanoconverter is capable of directly generating electricity through a nanostructure embedded in a polymer layer experiencing differential thermal expansion in a stress transfer zone. High surface-to-volume ratio semiconductor nanowires or nanotubes (such as ZnO, silicon, carbon, etc.) are grown either aligned or substantially vertically aligned on a substrate. The resulting nanoforest is then embedded with the polymer layer, which transfers stress to the nanostructures in the stress transfer zone, thereby creating a nanostructure voltage output due to the piezoelectric effect acting on the nanostructure. Electrodes attached at both ends of the nanostructures generate output power at densities of .about.20 nW/cm.sup.2 with heating temperatures of .about.65.degree. C. Nanoconverters arrayed in a series parallel arrangement may be constructed in planar, stacked, or rolled arrays to supply power to nano- and micro-devices without use of external batteries.

Two-dimensional ferroelectrics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Blinov, L M; Fridkin, Vladimir M; Palto, Sergei P [A.V. Shubnikov Institute of Crystallography, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russian Federaion (Russian Federation); Bune, A V; Dowben, P A; Ducharme, Stephen [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Behlen Laboratory of Physics, Center for Materials Research and Analysis, University of Nebraska-Linkoln, Linkoln, NE (United States)

2000-03-31

The investigation of the finite-size effect in ferroelectric crystals and films has been limited by the experimental conditions. The smallest demonstrated ferroelectric crystals had a diameter of {approx}200 A and the thinnest ferroelectric films were {approx}200 A thick, macroscopic sizes on an atomic scale. Langmuir-Blodgett deposition of films one monolayer at a time has produced high quality ferroelectric films as thin as 10 A, made from polyvinylidene fluoride and its copolymers. These ultrathin films permitted the ultimate investigation of finite-size effects on the atomic thickness scale. Langmuir-Blodgett films also revealed the fundamental two-dimensional character of ferroelectricity in these materials by demonstrating that there is no so-called critical thickness; films as thin as two monolayers (1 nm) are ferroelectric, with a transition temperature near that of the bulk material. The films exhibit all the main properties of ferroelectricity with a first-order ferroelectric-paraelectric phase transition: polarization hysteresis (switching); the jump in spontaneous polarization at the phase transition temperature; thermal hysteresis in the polarization; the increase in the transition temperature with applied field; double hysteresis above the phase transition temperature; and the existence of the ferroelectric critical point. The films also exhibit a new phase transition associated with the two-dimensional layers. (reviews of topical problems)

The Use of Ferroelectrics and Dipeptides as Insulators in Organic Field-Effect Transistor Devices

Science.gov (United States)

Knotts, Grant

While the electrical transport characteristics of organic electronic devices are generally inferior to their inorganic counterparts, organic materials offer many advantages over inorganics. The materials used in organic devices can often be deposited using cheap and simple processing techniques such as spincoating, inkjet printing, or roll-to-roll processing; allow for large-scale, flexible devices; and can have the added benefits of being transparent or biodegradable. In this manuscript, we examine the role of solvents in the performance of pentacene-based devices using the ferroelectric copolymer polyvinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene (PVDF-TrFe) as a gate insulating layer. High dipole moment solvents, such as dimethyl sulfoxide, used to dissolve the copolymer for spincoating increase the charge carrier mobility in field-effect transistors (FETs) by nearly an order of magnitude as compared to lower dipole moment solvents. The polarization in Al/PVDF-TrFe/Au metal-ferroelectric-metal devices also shows an increase in remnant polarization of 20% in the sample using dimethyl sulfoxide as the solvent for the ferroelectric. Interestingly, at low applied electric fields of 100 MV/m a remnant polarization is seen in the high dipole moment device that is nearly 3.5 times larger than the value observed in the lower dipole moment samples, suggesting that the degree of dipolar order is higher at low operating voltages for the high dipole moment device. We will also discuss the use of peptide-based nanostructures derived from natural amino acids as building blocks for biocompatible devices. These peptides can be used in a bottom-up process without the need for expensive lithography. Thin films of L,L-diphenylalanine micro/nanostructures (FF-MNSs) were used as the dielectric layer in pentacene-based FETs and metal-insulator-semiconductor diodes both in bottom-gate and top-gate structures. It is demonstrated that the FFMNSs can be functionalized for detection of enzyme

Low-energy ion beam synthesis of Ag endotaxial nanostructures in silicon

Science.gov (United States)

Nagarajappa, Kiran; Guha, Puspendu; Thirumurugan, Arun; Satyam, Parlapalli V.; Bhatta, Umananda M.

2018-06-01

Coherently, embedded metal nanostructures (endotaxial) are known to have potential applications concerning the areas of plasmonics, optoelectronics and thermoelectronics. Incorporating appropriate concentrations of metal atoms into crystalline silicon is critical for these applications. Therefore, choosing proper dose of low-energy ions, instead of depositing thin film as a source of metal atoms, helps in avoiding surplus concentration of metal atoms that diffuses into the silicon crystal. In this work, 30 keV silver negative ions are implanted into a SiO x /Si(100) at two different fluences: 1 × 1015 and 2.5 × 1015 Ag- ions/cm2. Later, the samples are annealed at 700 °C for 1 h in Ar atmosphere. Embedded silver nanostructures have been characterized using planar and cross-sectional TEM (XTEM) analysis. Planar TEM analysis shows the formation of mostly rectangular silver nanostructures following the fourfold symmetry of the substrate. XTEM analysis confirms the formation of prism-shaped silver nanostructures embedded inside crystalline silicon. Endotaxial nature of the embedded crystals has been discussed using selected area electron diffraction analysis.

Electrochemical synthesis of MoS2 quantum dots embedded nanostructured porous silicon with enhanced electroluminescence property

Science.gov (United States)

Shrivastava, Megha; Kumari, Reeta; Parra, Mohammad Ramzan; Pandey, Padmini; Siddiqui, Hafsa; Haque, Fozia Z.

2017-11-01

In this report we present the successful enhancement in electroluminescence (EL) in nanostructured n-type porous silicon (PS) with an idea of embedding luminophorous Molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) quantum dots (QD's). Electrochemical anodization technique was used for the formation of PS surface and MoS2 QD's were prepared using the electrochemical route. Spin coating technique was employed for the proper incorporation of MoS2 QD's within the PS nanostructures. The crystallographic analysis was performed using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy techniques. However, surface morphology was determined using Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Atomic force microscopy (AFM). The optical measurements were performed on photoluminescence (PL) spectrophotometer; additionally for electroluminescence (EL) study special arrangement of instrumental setup was made at laboratory level which provides novelty to this work. A diode prototype was made comprising Ag/MoS2:PS/Silicon/Ag for EL study. The MoS2:PS shows a remarkable concentration dependent enhancement in PL as well as in EL intensities, which paves a way to better utilize this strategy in optoelectronic device applications.

Interface engineered ferrite@ferroelectric core-shell nanostructures: A facile approach to impart superior magneto-electric coupling

Science.gov (United States)

Abraham, Ann Rose; Raneesh, B.; Das, Dipankar; Oluwafemi, Oluwatobi Samuel; Thomas, Sabu; Kalarikkal, Nandakumar

2018-04-01

The electric field control of magnetism in multiferroics is attractive for the realization of ultra-fast and miniaturized low power device applications like nonvolatile memories. Room temperature hybrid multiferroic heterostructures with core-shell (0-0) architecture (ferrite core and ferroelectric shell) were developed via a two-step method. High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HRTEM) images confirm the core-shell structure. The temperature dependant magnetization measurements and Mossbauer spectra reveal superparamagnetic nature of the core-shell sample. The ferroelectric hysteresis loops reveal leaky nature of the samples. The results indicate the promising applications of the samples for magneto-electric memories and spintronics.

Unveiling the Role of CNTs on the Phase Formation of 1D Ferroelectrics

KAUST Repository

Mahajan, Amit

2015-05-21

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have the potential to act as templates or bottom electrodes for three dimension (3D) capacitor arrays, which utilise one dimension (1D) ferroelectric nanostructures to increase memory size and density. However, growing a ferroelectric on the surface of CNTs is non-trivial. Here, we demonstrate that multi-walled (MW) CNTs decrease the time and temperature for formation of lead zirconium titanate Pb(Zr1-xTix)O3 (PZT) by ~100 ºC commensurate with a decrease in activation energy from 68±15 kJ/mol to 27±2 kJ/mol. As a consequence, monophasic PZT was obtained at 575 ºC for MWCNTs/PZT whereas for pure PZT traces of pyrochlore were still present at 650 ºC, where PZT phase formed due to homogeneous nucleation. The piezoelectric nature of MWCNT/PZT synthesised at 500 ºC for 1 h was proved. Although further work is required to prove the concept of 3D capacitor arrays, our result suggests that it is feasible to utilise MWCNTs as templates/electrodes for the formation of 1D PZT nano ferroelectrics.

Study of glass-nanocomposite and glass-ceramic containing ferroelectric phase

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Abdel-Khalek, E.K., E-mail: Eid_khalaf0@yahoo.com [Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Al Azhar University, Nasr City 11884, Cairo (Egypt); Mohamed, E.A. [Department of Physics, Faculty of Science (Girl' s Branch), Al Azhar University, Nasr City, Cairo (Egypt); Salem, Shaaban M.; Ebrahim, F.M.; Kashif, I. [Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Al Azhar University, Nasr City 11884, Cairo (Egypt)

2012-03-15

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Glass nanocomposites was synthesized. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Glass nanocomposites exhibit both optical transmission bands at 598 and 660 nm and broad dielectric anomalies. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The ferroelectricity in pure single-phase oxide glass has not yet been discovered. - Abstract: Transparent glass nanocomposite in the pseudo binary system (100 - x) Li{sub 2}B{sub 4}O{sub 7}-xBaTiO{sub 3} with x = 0 and 60 (in mol%) were prepared. Amorphous and glassy characteristics of the as-prepared samples were established via X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) respectively. The precipitated BaTiO{sub 3} nanocrystal phase embedded in the glass sample at x = 60 mol% was identified by transmission electron microscopic (TEM). The optical transmission bands at 598 and 660 nm were assigned to Ti{sup 3+} ions in tetragonal distorted octahedral sites. The precipitated Li{sub 2}B{sub 4}O{sub 7}, BaTi(BO{sub 3}){sub 2} and BaTiO{sub 3} nanocrystallites phases with heat-treatment at 923 K for 6 h (HT923) in glass-ceramic were identified by XRD, TEM and infrared absorption spectroscopy. The as-prepared at x = 60 mol% and the HT923 samples exhibit broad dielectric anomalies in the vicinity of the ferroelectric-to-paraelectric transition temperature. The results demonstrate that the method presented may be an effective way to fabricate ferroelectric host and development of multifunctional ferroelectrics.

Ferroelectric switching of elastin

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Yuanming; Cai, Hong-Ling; Zelisko, Matthew; Wang, Yunjie; Sun, Jinglan; Yan, Fei; Ma, Feiyue; Wang, Peiqi; Chen, Qian Nataly; Zheng, Hairong; Meng, Xiangjian; Sharma, Pradeep; Zhang, Yanhang; Li, Jiangyu

2014-01-01

Ferroelectricity has long been speculated to have important biological functions, although its very existence in biology has never been firmly established. Here, we present compelling evidence that elastin, the key ECM protein found in connective tissues, is ferroelectric, and we elucidate the molecular mechanism of its switching. Nanoscale piezoresponse force microscopy and macroscopic pyroelectric measurements both show that elastin retains ferroelectricity at 473 K, with polarization on the order of 1 μC/cm2, whereas coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations predict similar polarization with a Curie temperature of 580 K, which is higher than most synthetic molecular ferroelectrics. The polarization of elastin is found to be intrinsic in tropoelastin at the monomer level, analogous to the unit cell level polarization in classical perovskite ferroelectrics, and it switches via thermally activated cooperative rotation of dipoles. Our study sheds light onto a long-standing question on ferroelectric switching in biology and establishes ferroelectricity as an important biophysical property of proteins. This is a critical first step toward resolving its physiological significance and pathological implications. PMID:24958890

Magnetic enhancement of ferroelectric polarization in a self-grown ferroelectric-ferromagnetic composite

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, Amit; Narayan, Bastola; Pachat, Rohit; Ranjan, Rajeev

2018-02-01

Ferroelectric-ferromagnetic multiferroic composites are of great interest both from the scientific and technological standpoints. The extent of coupling between polarization and magnetization in such two-phase systems depends on how efficiently the magnetostrictive and electrostrictive/piezoelectric strain gets transferred from one phase to the other. This challenge is most profound in the easy to make 0-3 ferroelectric-ferromagnetic particulate composites. Here we report a self-grown ferroelectric-ferromagnetic 0-3 particulate composite through controlled spontaneous precipitation of ferrimagnetic barium hexaferrite phase (BaF e12O19 ) amid ferroelectric grains in the multiferroic alloy system BiFe O3-BaTi O3 . We demonstrate that a composite specimen exhibiting merely ˜1% hexaferrite phase exhibits ˜34% increase in saturation polarization in a dc magnetic field of ˜10 kOe. Using modified Rayleigh analysis of the polarization field loop in the subcoercive field region we argue that the substantial enhancement in the ferroelectric switching is associated with the reduction in the barrier heights of the pinning centers of the ferroelectric-ferroelastic domain walls in the stress field generated by magnetostriction in the hexaferrite grains when the magnetic field is turned on. Our study proves that controlled precipitation of the magnetic phase is a good strategy for synthesis of 0-3 ferroelectric-ferromagnetic particulate multiferroic composite as it not only helps in ensuring a good electrical insulating character of the composite, enabling it to sustain high enough electric field for ferroelectric switching, but also the factors associated with the spontaneity of the precipitation process ensure efficient transfer of the magnetostrictive strain/stress to the surrounding ferroelectric matrix making domain wall motion easy.

Molecular ferroelectrics: where electronics meet biology.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Jiangyu; Liu, Yuanming; Zhang, Yanhang; Cai, Hong-Ling; Xiong, Ren-Gen

2013-12-28

In the last several years, we have witnessed significant advances in molecular ferroelectrics, with the ferroelectric properties of molecular crystals approaching those of barium titanate. In addition, ferroelectricity has been observed in biological systems, filling an important missing link in bioelectric phenomena. In this perspective, we will present short historical notes on ferroelectrics, followed by an overview of the fundamentals of ferroelectricity. The latest developments in molecular ferroelectrics and biological ferroelectricity will then be highlighted, and their implications and potential applications will be discussed. We close by noting molecular ferroelectric as an exciting frontier between electronics and biology, and a number of challenges ahead are also described.

Manipulation of charge transfer and transport in plasmonic-ferroelectric hybrids for photoelectrochemical applications

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Zhijie; Cao, Dawei; Wen, Liaoyong; Xu, Rui; Obergfell, Manuel; Mi, Yan; Zhan, Zhibing; Nasori, Nasori; Demsar, Jure; Lei, Yong

2016-01-01

Utilizing plasmonic nanostructures for efficient and flexible conversion of solar energy into electricity or fuel presents a new paradigm in photovoltaics and photoelectrochemistry research. In a conventional photoelectrochemical cell, consisting of a plasmonic structure in contact with a semiconductor, the type of photoelectrochemical reaction is determined by the band bending at the semiconductor/electrolyte interface. The nature of the reaction is thus hard to tune. Here instead of using a semiconductor, we employed a ferroelectric material, Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 (PZT). By depositing gold nanoparticle arrays and PZT films on ITO substrates, and studying the photocurrent as well as the femtosecond transient absorbance in different configurations, we demonstrate an effective charge transfer between the nanoparticle array and PZT. Most importantly, we show that the photocurrent can be tuned by nearly an order of magnitude when changing the ferroelectric polarization in PZT, demonstrating a versatile and tunable system for energy harvesting. PMID:26753764

Ferroelectrics principles, structure and applications

CERN Document Server

Merchant, Serena

2014-01-01

Ferroelectric physics is a theory on ferroelectric phase transition for explaining various related phenomena, which is different from dielectric physics. Ferroelectric materials are important functional materials for various applications such as NVRAMs, high energy density capacitors, actuators, MEMs, sonar sensors, microphones and scanning electron microscopes (SEM). This book investigates the dielectric, ferroelectric and energy storage properties of barium zirconate-titanate/barium calcium-titanate (BZT-BCT) based ceramic for high energy density capacitors. It also compares the energy storage capabilities of ceramic powders with polymer-ceramic nanocomposites; and discusses dielectric properties of ferroelectricity in composition distributions.

Transparent conductive oxide films embedded with plasmonic nanostructure for light-emitting diode applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Chuang, Shih-Hao; Tsung, Cheng-Sheng; Chen, Ching-Ho; Ou, Sin-Liang; Horng, Ray-Hua; Lin, Cheng-Yi; Wuu, Dong-Sing

2015-02-04

In this study, a spin coating process in which the grating structure comprises an Ag nanoparticle layer coated on a p-GaN top layer of InGaN/GaN light-emitting diode (LED) was developed. Various sizes of plasmonic nanoparticles embedded in a transparent conductive layer were clearly observed after the deposition of indium tin oxide (ITO). The plasmonic nanostructure enhanced the light extraction efficiency of blue LED. Output power was 1.8 times the magnitude of that of conventional LEDs operating at 350 mA, but retained nearly the same current-voltage characteristic. Unlike in previous research on surface-plasmon-enhanced LEDs, the metallic nanoparticles were consistently deposited over the surface area. However, according to microstructural observation, ITO layer mixed with Ag-based nanoparticles was distributed at a distance of approximately 150 nm from the interface of ITO/p-GaN. Device performance can be improved substantially by using the three-dimensional distribution of Ag-based nanoparticles in the transparent conductive layer, which scatters the propagating light randomly and is coupled between the localized surface plasmon and incident light internally trapped in the LED structure through total internal reflection.

Free-volume characterization of nanostructurized substances by positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Shpotyuk, O.; Ingram, A.; Shpotyuk, Ya.

2018-02-01

Methodological possibilities of positron annihilation lifetime (PAL) spectroscopy are examined to parameterize free-volume structural evolution processes in some nanostructurized substances obeying conversion from positronium (Ps) decaying to positron trapping. Unlike conventional x3-term fitting analysis based on admixed positron trapping and Ps decaying, the effect of nanostructurization is considered as occurring due to conversion from preferential Ps decaying in initial host matrix to positron trapping in modified (nanostructurized) host-guest matrix. The developed approach referred to as x3-x2-CDA (coupling decomposition algorithm) allows estimation defect-free bulk and defect-specific positron lifetimes of free-volume elements responsible for nanostructurization. The applicability of this approach is proved for some nanostructurized materials allowing free-volume changes through Ps-to-positron trapping conversion, such as (i) metallic Ag nanoparticles embedded in polymer matrix, (ii) structure-modification processes caused by swift heavy ions irradiation in polystyrene, and (iii) host-guest chemistry problems like water immersion in alumomagnesium spinel ceramics. This approach is considered to be used as test-indicator, separating processes of host-matrix nanostructurization due to embedded nanoparticles from uncorrelated changes in positron-trapping and Ps-decaying channels.

A two-stage model of rough-interface scattering for embedded nano-structures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Karamehmedovic, Mirza; Hansen, P. E.

2016-01-01

We decompose scattering by nanostructures on rough substrates into two surface transfer functions: one heuristic, computed for the bare substrate from experimental BRDF data, and the other sparse and constructed for nanostructures on smooth surfaces. We explore numerically the performance...

Polymer Ferroelectric Memory for Flexible Electronics

KAUST Repository

Khan, Mohd Adnan

2013-01-01

With the projected growth of the flexible and plastic electronics industry, there is renewed interest in the research community to develop high performance all-polymeric memory which will be an essential component of any electronic circuit. Some of the efforts in polymer memories are based on different mechanisms such as filamentary conduction, charge trapping effects, dipole alignment, and reduction-oxidation to name a few. Among these the leading candidate are those based on the mechanism of ferroelectricity. Polymer ferroelectric memory can be used in niche applications like smart cards, RFID tags, sensors etc. This dissertation will focus on novel material and device engineering to fabricate high performance low temperature polymeric ferroelectric memory for flexible electronics. We address and find solutions to some fundamental problems affecting all polymer ferroelectric memory like high coercive fields, fatigue and thermal stability issues, poor breakdown strength and poor p-type hole mobilities. Some of the strategies adopted in this dissertation are: Use of different flexible substrates, electrode engineering to improve charge injection and fatigue properties of ferroelectric polymers, large area ink jet printing of ferroelectric memory devices, use of polymer blends to improve insulating properties of ferroelectric polymers and use of oxide semiconductors to fabricate high mobility p-type ferroelectric memory. During the course of this dissertation we have fabricated: the first all-polymer ferroelectric capacitors with solvent modified highly conducting polymeric poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly(styrenesulfonate) [PEDOT:PSS] electrodes on plastic substrates with performance as good as devices with metallic Platinum-Gold electrodes on silicon substrates; the first all-polymer high performance ferroelectric memory on banknotes for security applications; novel ferroelectric capacitors based on blends of ferroelectric poly(vinylidene fluoride

Polymer Ferroelectric Memory for Flexible Electronics

KAUST Repository

Khan, Mohd Adnan

2013-11-01

With the projected growth of the flexible and plastic electronics industry, there is renewed interest in the research community to develop high performance all-polymeric memory which will be an essential component of any electronic circuit. Some of the efforts in polymer memories are based on different mechanisms such as filamentary conduction, charge trapping effects, dipole alignment, and reduction-oxidation to name a few. Among these the leading candidate are those based on the mechanism of ferroelectricity. Polymer ferroelectric memory can be used in niche applications like smart cards, RFID tags, sensors etc. This dissertation will focus on novel material and device engineering to fabricate high performance low temperature polymeric ferroelectric memory for flexible electronics. We address and find solutions to some fundamental problems affecting all polymer ferroelectric memory like high coercive fields, fatigue and thermal stability issues, poor breakdown strength and poor p-type hole mobilities. Some of the strategies adopted in this dissertation are: Use of different flexible substrates, electrode engineering to improve charge injection and fatigue properties of ferroelectric polymers, large area ink jet printing of ferroelectric memory devices, use of polymer blends to improve insulating properties of ferroelectric polymers and use of oxide semiconductors to fabricate high mobility p-type ferroelectric memory. During the course of this dissertation we have fabricated: the first all-polymer ferroelectric capacitors with solvent modified highly conducting polymeric poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly(styrenesulfonate) [PEDOT:PSS] electrodes on plastic substrates with performance as good as devices with metallic Platinum-Gold electrodes on silicon substrates; the first all-polymer high performance ferroelectric memory on banknotes for security applications; novel ferroelectric capacitors based on blends of ferroelectric poly(vinylidene fluoride

High-performance ferroelectric memory based on phase-separated films of polymer blends

KAUST Repository

Khan, Yasser; Bhansali, Unnat Sampatraj; Almadhoun, Mahmoud N.; Odeh, Ihab N.; Cha, Dong Kyu; Alshareef, Husam N.

2013-01-01

High-performance polymer memory is fabricated using blends of ferroelectric poly(vinylidene-fluoride-trifluoroethylene) (P(VDF-TrFE)) and highly insulating poly(p-phenylene oxide) (PPO). The blend films spontaneously phase separate into amorphous PPO nanospheres embedded in a semicrystalline P(VDF-TrFE) matrix. Using low molecular weight PPO with high miscibility in a common solvent, i.e., methyl ethyl ketone, blend films are spin cast with extremely low roughness (Rrms ≈ 4.92 nm) and achieve nanoscale phase seperation (PPO domain size < 200 nm). These blend devices display highly improved ferroelectric and dielectric performance with low dielectric losses (<0.2 up to 1 MHz), enhanced thermal stability (up to ≈353 K), excellent fatigue endurance (80% retention after 106 cycles at 1 KHz) and high dielectric breakdown fields (≈360 MV/m). © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

High-performance ferroelectric memory based on phase-separated films of polymer blends

KAUST Repository

Khan, Yasser

2013-10-29

High-performance polymer memory is fabricated using blends of ferroelectric poly(vinylidene-fluoride-trifluoroethylene) (P(VDF-TrFE)) and highly insulating poly(p-phenylene oxide) (PPO). The blend films spontaneously phase separate into amorphous PPO nanospheres embedded in a semicrystalline P(VDF-TrFE) matrix. Using low molecular weight PPO with high miscibility in a common solvent, i.e., methyl ethyl ketone, blend films are spin cast with extremely low roughness (Rrms ≈ 4.92 nm) and achieve nanoscale phase seperation (PPO domain size < 200 nm). These blend devices display highly improved ferroelectric and dielectric performance with low dielectric losses (<0.2 up to 1 MHz), enhanced thermal stability (up to ≈353 K), excellent fatigue endurance (80% retention after 106 cycles at 1 KHz) and high dielectric breakdown fields (≈360 MV/m). © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Encoding, training and retrieval in ferroelectric tunnel junctions

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Hanni; Xia, Yidong; Xu, Bo; Yin, Jiang; Yuan, Guoliang; Liu, Zhiguo

2016-05-01

Ferroelectric tunnel junctions (FTJs) are quantum nanostructures that have great potential in the hardware basis for future neuromorphic applications. Among recently proposed possibilities, the artificial cognition has high hopes, where encoding, training, memory solidification and retrieval constitute a whole chain that is inseparable. However, it is yet envisioned but experimentally unconfirmed. The poor retention or short-term store of tunneling electroresistance, in particular the intermediate states, is still a key challenge in FTJs. Here we report the encoding, training and retrieval in BaTiO3 FTJs, emulating the key features of information processing in terms of cognitive neuroscience. This is implemented and exemplified through processing characters. Using training inputs that are validated by the evolution of both barrier profile and domain configuration, accurate recalling of encoded characters in the retrieval stage is demonstrated.

Losses in Ferroelectric Materials

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Gang; Zhang, Shujun; Jiang, Wenhua; Cao, Wenwu

2015-01-01

Ferroelectric materials are the best dielectric and piezoelectric materials known today. Since the discovery of barium titanate in the 1940s, lead zirconate titanate ceramics in the 1950s and relaxor-PT single crystals (such as lead magnesium niobate-lead titanate and lead zinc niobate-lead titanate) in the 1980s and 1990s, perovskite ferroelectric materials have been the dominating piezoelectric materials for electromechanical devices, and are widely used in sensors, actuators and ultrasonic transducers. Energy losses (or energy dissipation) in ferroelectrics are one of the most critical issues for high power devices, such as therapeutic ultrasonic transducers, large displacement actuators, SONAR projectors, and high frequency medical imaging transducers. The losses of ferroelectric materials have three distinct types, i.e., elastic, piezoelectric and dielectric losses. People have been investigating the mechanisms of these losses and are trying hard to control and minimize them so as to reduce performance degradation in electromechanical devices. There are impressive progresses made in the past several decades on this topic, but some confusions still exist. Therefore, a systematic review to define related concepts and clear up confusions is urgently in need. With this objective in mind, we provide here a comprehensive review on the energy losses in ferroelectrics, including related mechanisms, characterization techniques and collections of published data on many ferroelectric materials to provide a useful resource for interested scientists and engineers to design electromechanical devices and to gain a global perspective on the complex physical phenomena involved. More importantly, based on the analysis of available information, we proposed a general theoretical model to describe the inherent relationships among elastic, dielectric, piezoelectric and mechanical losses. For multi-domain ferroelectric single crystals and ceramics, intrinsic and extrinsic energy

Losses in Ferroelectric Materials.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Gang; Zhang, Shujun; Jiang, Wenhua; Cao, Wenwu

2015-03-01

Ferroelectric materials are the best dielectric and piezoelectric materials known today. Since the discovery of barium titanate in the 1940s, lead zirconate titanate ceramics in the 1950s and relaxor-PT single crystals (such as lead magnesium niobate-lead titanate and lead zinc niobate-lead titanate) in the 1980s and 1990s, perovskite ferroelectric materials have been the dominating piezoelectric materials for electromechanical devices, and are widely used in sensors, actuators and ultrasonic transducers. Energy losses (or energy dissipation) in ferroelectrics are one of the most critical issues for high power devices, such as therapeutic ultrasonic transducers, large displacement actuators, SONAR projectors, and high frequency medical imaging transducers. The losses of ferroelectric materials have three distinct types, i.e., elastic, piezoelectric and dielectric losses. People have been investigating the mechanisms of these losses and are trying hard to control and minimize them so as to reduce performance degradation in electromechanical devices. There are impressive progresses made in the past several decades on this topic, but some confusions still exist. Therefore, a systematic review to define related concepts and clear up confusions is urgently in need. With this objective in mind, we provide here a comprehensive review on the energy losses in ferroelectrics, including related mechanisms, characterization techniques and collections of published data on many ferroelectric materials to provide a useful resource for interested scientists and engineers to design electromechanical devices and to gain a global perspective on the complex physical phenomena involved. More importantly, based on the analysis of available information, we proposed a general theoretical model to describe the inherent relationships among elastic, dielectric, piezoelectric and mechanical losses. For multi-domain ferroelectric single crystals and ceramics, intrinsic and extrinsic energy

Ferroelectricity at the nanoscale basics and applications

CERN Document Server

Fridkin, Vladimir

2014-01-01

This book examines a wide range of ferroelectric materials. It explains the theoretical background of ultrathin ferroelectric films,  presents applications of ferroelectric materials, and displays the mechanism of switching of nanosized ferroelectric films.

Nanostructured transparent conducting oxide electrochromic device

Science.gov (United States)

Milliron, Delia; Tangirala, Ravisubhash; Llordes, Anna; Buonsanti, Raffaella; Garcia, Guillermo

2016-05-17

The embodiments described herein provide an electrochromic device. In an exemplary embodiment, the electrochromic device includes (1) a substrate and (2) a film supported by the substrate, where the film includes transparent conducting oxide (TCO) nanostructures. In a further embodiment, the electrochromic device further includes (a) an electrolyte, where the nanostructures are embedded in the electrolyte, resulting in an electrolyte, nanostructure mixture positioned above the substrate and (b) a counter electrode positioned above the mixture. In a further embodiment, the electrochromic device further includes a conductive coating deposited on the substrate between the substrate and the mixture. In a further embodiment, the electrochromic device further includes a second substrate positioned above the mixture.

Manganese Nanostructures and Magnetism

Science.gov (United States)

Simov, Kirie Rangelov

The primary goal of this study is to incorporate adatoms with large magnetic moment, such as Mn, into two technologically significant group IV semiconductor (SC) matrices, e.g. Si and Ge. For the first time in the world, we experimentally demonstrate Mn doping by embedding nanostructured thin layers, i.e. delta-doping. The growth is observed by in-situ scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), which combines topographic and electronic information in a single image. We investigate the initial stages of Mn monolayer growth on a Si(100)(2x1) surface reconstruction, develop methods for classification of nanostructure types for a range of surface defect concentrations (1.0 to 18.2%), and subsequently encapsulate the thin Mn layer in a SC matrix. These experiments are instrumental in generating a surface processing diagram for self-assembly of monoatomic Mn-wires. The role of surface vacancies has also been studied by kinetic Monte Carlo modeling and the experimental observations are compared with the simulation results, leading to the conclusion that Si(100)(2x1) vacancies serve as nucleation centers in the Mn-Si system. Oxide formation, which happens readily in air, is detrimental to ferromagnetism and lessens the magnetic properties of the nanostructures. Therefore, the protective SC cap, composed of either Si or Ge, serves a dual purpose: it is both the embedding matrix for the Mn nanostructured thin film and a protective agent for oxidation. STM observations of partially deposited caps ensure that the nanostructures remain intact during growth. Lastly, the relationship between magnetism and nanostructure types is established by an in-depth study using x-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD). This sensitive method detects signals even at coverages less than one atomic layer of Mn. XMCD is capable of discerning which chemical compounds contribute to the magnetic moment of the system, and provides a ratio between the orbital and spin contributions. Depending on the amount

Ferroelectric devices

CERN Document Server

Uchino, Kenji

2009-01-01

Updating its bestselling predecessor, Ferroelectric Devices, Second Edition assesses the last decade of developments-and setbacks-in the commercialization of ferroelectricity. Field pioneer and esteemed author Uchino provides insight into why this relatively nascent and interdisciplinary process has failed so far without a systematic accumulation of fundamental knowledge regarding materials and device development.Filling the informational void, this collection of information reviews state-of-the-art research and development trends reflecting nano and optical technologies, environmental regulat

Computational study of textured ferroelectric polycrystals: Dielectric and piezoelectric properties of template-matrix composites

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Jie E.; Yan, Yongke; Priya, Shashank; Wang, Yu U.

2017-01-01

Quantitative relationships between processing, microstructure, and properties in textured ferroelectric polycrystals and the underlying responsible mechanisms are investigated by phase field modeling and computer simulation. This study focuses on three important aspects of textured ferroelectric ceramics: (i) grain microstructure evolution during templated grain growth processing, (ii) crystallographic texture development as a function of volume fraction and seed size of the templates, and (iii) dielectric and piezoelectric properties of the obtained template-matrix composites of textured polycrystals. Findings on the third aspect are presented here, while an accompanying paper of this work reports findings on the first two aspects. In this paper, the competing effects of crystallographic texture and template seed volume fraction on the dielectric and piezoelectric properties of ferroelectric polycrystals are investigated. The phase field model of ferroelectric composites consisting of template seeds embedded in matrix grains is developed to simulate domain evolution, polarization-electric field (P-E), and strain-electric field (ɛ-E) hysteresis loops. The coercive field, remnant polarization, dielectric permittivity, piezoelectric coefficient, and dissipation factor are studied as a function of grain texture and template seed volume fraction. It is found that, while crystallographic texture significantly improves the polycrystal properties towards those of single crystals, a higher volume fraction of template seeds tends to decrease the electromechanical properties, thus canceling the advantage of ferroelectric polycrystals textured by templated grain growth processing. This competing detrimental effect is shown to arise from the composite effect, where the template phase possesses material properties inferior to the matrix phase, causing mechanical clamping and charge accumulation at inter-phase interfaces between matrix and template inclusions. The computational

Ferroelectric ultrathin perovskite films

Science.gov (United States)

Rappe, Andrew M; Kolpak, Alexie Michelle

2013-12-10

Disclosed herein are perovskite ferroelectric thin-film. Also disclosed are methods of controlling the properties of ferroelectric thin films. These films can be used in a variety materials and devices, such as catalysts and storage media, respectively.

Improving information density in ferroelectric polymer films by using nanoimprinted gratings

Science.gov (United States)

Martínez-Tong, Daniel E.; Soccio, Michela; Rueda, Daniel R.; Nogales, Aurora; García-Gutiérrez, Mari Cruz; Ezquerra, Tiberio A.

2015-03-01

The development of polymer non-volatile memories depends on the effective fabrication of devices with high density of information. Well-defined low aspect ratio nanogratings on thin films of poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene) copolymers can be fabricated by using Nanoimprint Lithography (NIL). By using these nanogratings, an improved management of writing and reading information can be reached as revealed by Piezoresponse Force Microscopy (PFM). Structural investigation by means of Grazing Incidence X-ray (GIX) scattering techniques indicates that the physical confinement generated by nanoimprint promotes the development of smaller and edge-on oriented crystals. Our results evidence that one-dimensional nanostructuring can be a straightforward approach to improve the control of the polarization in ferroelectric polymer thin films.

p\text{-}n Junction Dynamics Induced in a Graphene Channel by Ferroelectric-Domain Motion in the Substrate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kurchak, Anatolii I. [National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (NASU), Kiev (Ukraine); Eliseev, Eugene A. [National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (NASU), Kiev (Ukraine); Kalinin, Sergei V. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Strikha, Maksym V. [National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (NASU), Kiev (Ukraine); Taras Shevchenko Kyiv National Univ., Kyiv (Ukraine); Morozovska, Anna N. [National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (NASU), Kiev (Ukraine)

2017-08-30

The p - n junction dynamics induced in a graphene channel by stripe-domain nucleation, motion, and reversal in a ferroelectric substrate is explored using a self-consistent approach based on Landau-Ginzburg-Devonshire phenomenology combined with classical electrostatics. Relatively low gate voltages are required to induce the hysteresis of ferroelectric polarization and graphene charge in response to the periodic gate voltage. Pronounced nonlinear hysteresis of graphene conductance with a wide memory window corresponds to high amplitudes of gate voltage. Also, we reveal the extrinsic size effect in the dependence of the graphene-channel conductivity on its length. We predict that the top-gate–dielectric-layer–graphene-channel–ferroelectric-substrate nanostructure considered here can be a promising candidate for the fabrication of the next generation of modulators and rectifiers based on the graphene p - n junctions.

Enhancement of the saturation mobility in a ferroelectric-gated field-effect transistor by the surface planarization of ferroelectric film

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Woo Young, E-mail: semigumi@kaist.ac.kr [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), 373-1, Guseong-dong, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-701 (Korea, Republic of); Jeon, Gwang-Jae; Kang, In-Ku; Shim, Hyun Bin; Lee, Hee Chul [Department of Electrical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), 373-1, Guseong-dong, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-701 (Korea, Republic of)

2015-09-30

Ferroelectricity refers to the property of a dielectric material to undergo spontaneous polarization which originates from the crystalline phase. Hence, ferroelectric materials have a certain degree of surface roughness when they are formed as a thin film. A high degree of surface roughness may cause unintended phenomena when the ferroelectric material is used in electronic devices. Specifically, the quality of subsequently deposited film could be affected by the rough surface. The present study reports that the surface roughness of ferroelectric polymer film can be reduced by a double-spin-coating method of a solution, with control of the solubility of the solution. At an identical thickness of 350 nm, double-spin-coated ferroelectric film has a root-mean-square roughness of only 3 nm, while for single-spin-coated ferroelectric film this value is approximately 16 nm. A ferroelectric-gated field-effect transistor was fabricated using the proposed double-spin-coating method, showing a maximum saturation mobility as much as seven-fold than that of a transistor fabricated with single-spin-coated ferroelectric film. The enhanced saturation mobility could be explained by the Poole–Frenkel conduction mechanism. The proposed method to reduce the surface roughness of ferroelectric film would be useful for high performance organic electronic devices, including crystalline-phase dielectric film. - Highlights: • Single and double-layer solution-processed polymer ferroelectric films were obtained. • Adjusting the solvent solubility allows making double-layer ferroelectric (DF) films. • The DF film has a smoother surface than single-layer ferroelectric (SF) film. • DF-gated transistor has faster saturation mobility than SF-based transistor. • Solvent solubility adjustment led to higher performance organic devices.

Carbon Nanotube Embedded Nanostructure for Biometrics.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Juhyuk; Youn, Jae Ryoun; Song, Young Seok

2017-12-27

Low electric energy loss is a very important problem to minimize the decay of transferred energy intensity due to impedance mismatch. This issue has been dealt with by adding an impedance matching layer at the interface between two media. A strategy was proposed to improve the charge transfer from the human body to a biometric device by using an impedance matching nanostructure. Nanocomposite pattern arrays were fabricated with shape memory polymer and carbon nanotubes. The shape recovery ability of the nanopatterns enhanced durability and sustainability of the structure. It was found that the composite nanopatterns improved the current transfer by two times compared with the nonpatterned composite sample. The underlying mechanism of the enhanced charge transport was understood by carrying out a numerical simulation. We anticipate that this study can provide a new pathway for developing advanced biometric devices with high sensitivity to biological information.

Ferroelectric Negative Capacitance Domain Dynamics

OpenAIRE

Hoffmann, Michael; Khan, Asif Islam; Serrao, Claudy; Lu, Zhongyuan; Salahuddin, Sayeef; Pešić, Milan; Slesazeck, Stefan; Schroeder, Uwe; Mikolajick, Thomas

2017-01-01

Transient negative capacitance effects in epitaxial ferroelectric Pb(Zr$_{0.2}$Ti$_{0.8}$)O$_3$ capacitors are investigated with a focus on the dynamical switching behavior governed by domain nucleation and growth. Voltage pulses are applied to a series connection of the ferroelectric capacitor and a resistor to directly measure the ferroelectric negative capacitance during switching. A time-dependent Ginzburg-Landau approach is used to investigate the underlying domain dynamics. The transien...

Coaxial electrospun aligned tussah silk fibroin nanostructured fiber scaffolds embedded with hydroxyapatite–tussah silk fibroin nanoparticles for bone tissue engineering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shao, Weili [Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Composites, Ministry of Education, Institute of Textile Composites, Tianjin Polytechnic University, Tianjin 300387 (China); He, Jianxin, E-mail: hejianxin771117@163.com [College of Textiles, Zhongyuan University of Technology, Zhengzhou 450007 (China); Collaborative Innovation Center of Textile and Garment Industry, Henan Province, Zhengzhou 450007 (China); Sang, Feng [Department of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome Treatment and Research Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zhengzhou 450007 (China); Ding, Bin [College of Textiles, Zhongyuan University of Technology, Zhengzhou 450007 (China); Collaborative Innovation Center of Textile and Garment Industry, Henan Province, Zhengzhou 450007 (China); Chen, Li, E-mail: chenli@tjpu.edu.cn [Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Composites, Ministry of Education, Institute of Textile Composites, Tianjin Polytechnic University, Tianjin 300387 (China); Cui, Shizhong; Li, Kejing; Han, Qiming; Tan, Weilin [College of Textiles, Zhongyuan University of Technology, Zhengzhou 450007 (China); Collaborative Innovation Center of Textile and Garment Industry, Henan Province, Zhengzhou 450007 (China)

2016-01-01

The bone is a composite of inorganic and organic materials and possesses a complex hierarchical architecture consisting of mineralized fibrils formed by collagen molecules and coated with oriented hydroxyapatite. To regenerate bone tissue, it is necessary to provide a scaffold that mimics the architecture of the extracellular matrix in native bone. Here, we describe one such scaffold, a nanostructured composite with a core made of a composite of hydroxyapatite and tussah silk fibroin. The core is encased in a shell of tussah silk fibroin. The composite fibers were fabricated by coaxial electrospinning using green water solvent and were characterized using different techniques. In comparison to nanofibers of pure tussah silk, composite notably improved mechanical properties, with 90-fold and 2-fold higher initial modulus and breaking stress, respectively, obtained. Osteoblast-like MG-63 cells were cultivated on the composite to assess its suitability as a scaffold for bone tissue engineering. We found that the fiber scaffold supported cell adhesion and proliferation and functionally promoted alkaline phosphatase and mineral deposition relevant for biomineralization. In addition, the composite were more biocompatible than pure tussah silk fibroin or cover slip. Thus, the nanostructured composite has excellent biomimetic and mechanical properties and is a potential biocompatible scaffold for bone tissue engineering. - Highlights: • A designing scaffold strategy to imitate the mineralized collagen bundles in natural bone was presented. • Aligned nanostructured composite fibers were fabricated by coaxial electrospinning using green water solvent. • Mechanical properties of aligned TSF nanofiber had been significantly improved by embedding with composite nanoparticles. • Composite scaffolds effectively supported proliferation of MG-63 cells and promoted biomineralization.

Ferroelectric materials and their applications

CERN Document Server

Xu, Y

2013-01-01

This book presents the basic physical properties, structure, fabrication methods and applications of ferroelectric materials. These are widely used in various devices, such as piezoelectric/electrostrictive transducers and actuators, pyroelectric infrared detectors, optical integrated circuits, optical data storage, display devices, etc. The ferroelectric materials described in this book include a relatively complete list of practical and promising ferroelectric single crystals, bulk ceramics and thin films. Included are perovskite-type, lithium niobate, tungsten-bronze-type, water-soluable

Ferroelectric Electron Emission Principles and Technology

CERN Document Server

Riege, H

1997-01-01

The spontaneous electrical polarization of ferroelectric materials can be changed either by reversal or by phase transition from a ferroelectric into a non-ferroelectric state or vice versa. If spontaneous polarization changes are induced with fast heat, mechanical pressure, laser or electric field pulses on a submicrosecond time scale, strong uncompensated surface charge densities and related polarization fields are generated, which may lead to the intense self-emission of electrons from the negatively charged free surface areas of the ferroelectric sample. Hence, electron guns can be built with extraction-field-free ferroelectric cathodes, which may be easily separated from the high-field regions of post-accelerating gap structures. The intensity, the energy, the temporal and spatial distribution, and the repetitition rate of the emitted electron beams can be controlled within wide limits via the excitation pulses and external focusing and accelerating electromagnetic fields. The technological advantages an...

Ferroelectric negative capacitance domain dynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Hoffmann, Michael; Khan, Asif Islam; Serrao, Claudy; Lu, Zhongyuan; Salahuddin, Sayeef; Pešić, Milan; Slesazeck, Stefan; Schroeder, Uwe; Mikolajick, Thomas

2018-05-01

Transient negative capacitance effects in epitaxial ferroelectric Pb(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3 capacitors are investigated with a focus on the dynamical switching behavior governed by domain nucleation and growth. Voltage pulses are applied to a series connection of the ferroelectric capacitor and a resistor to directly measure the ferroelectric negative capacitance during switching. A time-dependent Ginzburg-Landau approach is used to investigate the underlying domain dynamics. The transient negative capacitance is shown to originate from reverse domain nucleation and unrestricted domain growth. However, with the onset of domain coalescence, the capacitance becomes positive again. The persistence of the negative capacitance state is therefore limited by the speed of domain wall motion. By changing the applied electric field, capacitor area or external resistance, this domain wall velocity can be varied predictably over several orders of magnitude. Additionally, detailed insights into the intrinsic material properties of the ferroelectric are obtainable through these measurements. A new method for reliable extraction of the average negative capacitance of the ferroelectric is presented. Furthermore, a simple analytical model is developed, which accurately describes the negative capacitance transient time as a function of the material properties and the experimental boundary conditions.

Electrical characterisation of ferroelectric field effect transistors based on ferroelectric HfO2 thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yurchuk, Ekaterina

2015-01-01

Ferroelectric field effect transistor (FeFET) memories based on a new type of ferroelectric material (silicon doped hafnium oxide) were studied within the scope of the present work. Utilisation of silicon doped hafnium oxide (Si:HfO 2 ) thin films instead of conventional perovskite ferroelectrics as a functional layer in FeFETs provides compatibility to the CMOS process as well as improved device scalability. The influence of different process parameters on the properties of Si:HfO 2 thin films was analysed in order to gain better insight into the occurrence of ferroelectricity in this system. A subsequent examination of the potential of this material as well as its possible limitations with the respect to the application in non-volatile memories followed. The Si:HfO 2 -based ferroelectric transistors that were fully integrated into the state-of-the-art high-k metal gate CMOS technology were studied in this work for the first time. The memory performance of these devices scaled down to 28 nm gate length was investigated. Special attention was paid to the charge trapping phenomenon shown to significantly affect the device behaviour.

Structure-Function Relationships of Ferroelectric Polymers.

Science.gov (United States)

Pavlopoulou, Eleni; Maiz, Jon; Spampinato, Nicoletta; Maglione, Mario; Hadziioannou, Georges

Poly(vinylidene fluoride), PVDF, and its copolymers with trifluoroethylene, P(VDF-co-TrFE) have been long appreciated for their excellent ferroelectric properties. Although they have been mainly studied in the 80s and 90s, understanding their performance is still lacking. Yet the increasing use of P(VDF-co-TrFE) thin films in organic electronic devices during the last ten years revives the need for apprehending the function of these materials. In this work we investigate the structure of P(VDF-co-TrFE) films and correlate it to their ferroelectric properties. Our results show that ferroelectric performance is solely driven by the fraction of polymer that has been crystallized in the ferroelectric phases of PVDF. The relations between remnant polarization, coercive field and dipole switching rate of P(VDF-co-TrFE) with the ferroelectric crystallinity are demonstrated. The French Research Agency (ANR), the Aquitaine Region, Arkema and STMicroelectronics are kindly acknowledged for financial support.

Ferroelectric domain engineering by focused infrared femtosecond pulses

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chen, Xin; Shvedov, Vladlen; Sheng, Yan, E-mail: yan.sheng@anu.edu.au [Laser Physics Centre, Research School of Physics and Engineering, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200 (Australia); Karpinski, Pawel [Laser Physics Centre, Research School of Physics and Engineering, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200 (Australia); Wroclaw University of Technology, Wybrzeze Wyspianskiego, Wroclaw (Poland); Koynov, Kaloian [Max-Planck Institute for Polymer Research, Ackermannweg 10, D-55128 Mainz (Germany); Wang, Bingxia; Trull, Jose; Cojocaru, Crina [Departament de Fisica i Enginyeria Nuclear, Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya, Rambla Sant Nebridi, 08222 Terrassa, Barcelona (Spain); Krolikowski, Wieslaw [Laser Physics Centre, Research School of Physics and Engineering, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200 (Australia); Texas A& M University at Qatar, Doha (Qatar)

2015-10-05

We demonstrate infrared femtosecond laser-induced inversion of ferroelectric domains. This process can be realised solely by using tightly focused laser pulses without application of any electric field prior to, in conjunction with, or subsequent to the laser irradiation. As most ferroelectric crystals like LiNbO{sub 3}, LiTaO{sub 3}, and KTiOPO{sub 4} are transparent in the infrared, this optical poling method allows one to form ferroelectric domain patterns much deeper inside a ferroelectric crystal than by using ultraviolet light and hence can be used to fabricate practical devices. We also propose in situ diagnostics of the ferroelectric domain inversion process by monitoring the Čerenkov second harmonic signal, which is sensitive to the appearance of ferroelectric domain walls.

Nanoscale organic ferroelectric resistive switches

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Khikhlovskyi, V.; Wang, R.; Breemen, A.J.J.M. van; Gelinck, G.H.; Janssen, R.A.J.; Kemerink, M.

2014-01-01

Organic ferroelectric resistive switches function by grace of nanoscale phase separation in a blend of a semiconducting and a ferroelectric polymer that is sandwiched between metallic electrodes. In this work, various scanning probe techniques are combined with numerical modeling to unravel their

Photoelectron spectroscopic and microspectroscopic probes of ferroelectrics

Science.gov (United States)

Tǎnase, Liviu C.; Abramiuc, Laura E.; Teodorescu, Cristian M.

2017-12-01

This contribution is a review of recent aspects connected with photoelectron spectroscopy of free ferroelectric surfaces, metals interfaced with these surfaces, graphene-like layers together with some exemplifications concerning molecular adsorption, dissociations and desorptions occurring from ferroelectrics. Standard photoelectron spectroscopy is used nowadays in correlation with other characterization techniques, such as piezoresponse force microscopy, high resolution transmission electron spectroscopy, and ferroelectric hysteresis cycles. In this work we will concentrate mainly on photoelectron spectroscopy and spectro-microscopy characterization of ferroelectric thin films, starting from atomically clean ferroelectric surfaces of lead zirco-titanate, then going towards heterostructures using this material in combination with graphene-like carbon layers or with metals. Concepts involving charge accumulation and depolarization near surface will be revisited by taking into account the newest findings in this area.

A facile synthesis of a novel optoelectric material: a nanocomposite of SWCNT/ZnO nanostructures embedded in sulfonated polyaniline

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rajesh K. Agrawalla

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Functionalized single-walled carbon nanotubes (f-SWCNTs hybridized with freshly prepared zinc oxide (ZnO nanocrystals have been found to be good luminescent material with tuned emission properties. A three-phase nanocomposite of sulfonated polyaniline embedded with such SWCNT/ZnO nanostructures has been prepared by a simple solution mixing chemical process and characterized by using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffractometry, Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis. The study of UV-visible absorption and photoluminescence spectroscopies reveal that the ternary polymer nanocomposite is a luminescent material with enhanced emission intensity. Also an increase in DC conductivity indicates that the nanocomposite is also a good conductive material, satisfying Mott’s variable range hopping model for a two-dimensional conduction. Such a three-phase nanocomposite may find extensive application in dye-sensitized solar cells, sensors, and supercapacitors.

Ferroelectric capacitor with reduced imprint

Science.gov (United States)

Evans, Jr., Joseph T.; Warren, William L.; Tuttle, Bruce A.; Dimos, Duane B.; Pike, Gordon E.

1997-01-01

An improved ferroelectric capacitor exhibiting reduced imprint effects in comparison to prior art capacitors. A capacitor according to the present invention includes top and bottom electrodes and a ferroelectric layer sandwiched between the top and bottom electrodes, the ferroelectric layer comprising a perovskite structure of the chemical composition ABO.sub.3 wherein the B-site comprises first and second elements and a dopant element that has an oxidation state greater than +4. The concentration of the dopant is sufficient to reduce shifts in the coercive voltage of the capacitor with time. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the ferroelectric element comprises Pb in the A-site, and the first and second elements are Zr and Ti, respectively. The preferred dopant is chosen from the group consisting of Niobium, Tantalum, and Tungsten. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the dopant occupies between 1 and 8% of the B-sites.

Flexible graphene–PZT ferroelectric nonvolatile memory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Wonho; Ahn, Jong-Hyun; Kahya, Orhan; Toh, Chee Tat; Özyilmaz, Barbaros

2013-01-01

We report the fabrication of a flexible graphene-based nonvolatile memory device using Pb(Zr 0.35 ,Ti 0.65 )O 3 (PZT) as the ferroelectric material. The graphene and PZT ferroelectric layers were deposited using chemical vapor deposition and sol–gel methods, respectively. Such PZT films show a high remnant polarization (P r ) of 30 μC cm −2 and a coercive voltage (V c ) of 3.5 V under a voltage loop over ±11 V. The graphene–PZT ferroelectric nonvolatile memory on a plastic substrate displayed an on/off current ratio of 6.7, a memory window of 6 V and reliable operation. In addition, the device showed one order of magnitude lower operation voltage range than organic-based ferroelectric nonvolatile memory after removing the anti-ferroelectric behavior incorporating an electrolyte solution. The devices showed robust operation in bent states of bending radii up to 9 mm and in cycling tests of 200 times. The devices exhibited remarkable mechanical properties and were readily integrated with plastic substrates for the production of flexible circuits. (paper)

Flexible graphene-PZT ferroelectric nonvolatile memory.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Wonho; Kahya, Orhan; Toh, Chee Tat; Ozyilmaz, Barbaros; Ahn, Jong-Hyun

2013-11-29

We report the fabrication of a flexible graphene-based nonvolatile memory device using Pb(Zr0.35,Ti0.65)O3 (PZT) as the ferroelectric material. The graphene and PZT ferroelectric layers were deposited using chemical vapor deposition and sol–gel methods, respectively. Such PZT films show a high remnant polarization (Pr) of 30 μC cm−2 and a coercive voltage (Vc) of 3.5 V under a voltage loop over ±11 V. The graphene–PZT ferroelectric nonvolatile memory on a plastic substrate displayed an on/off current ratio of 6.7, a memory window of 6 V and reliable operation. In addition, the device showed one order of magnitude lower operation voltage range than organic-based ferroelectric nonvolatile memory after removing the anti-ferroelectric behavior incorporating an electrolyte solution. The devices showed robust operation in bent states of bending radii up to 9 mm and in cycling tests of 200 times. The devices exhibited remarkable mechanical properties and were readily integrated with plastic substrates for the production of flexible circuits.

Ferroelectric devices using lead zirconate titanate (PZT) nanoparticles.

Science.gov (United States)

Paik, Young Hun; Kojori, Hossein Shokri; Kim, Sung Jin

2016-02-19

We successfully demonstrate the synthesis of lead zirconate titanate nanoparticles (PZT NPs) and a ferroelectric device using the synthesized PZT NPs. The crystalline structure and the size of the nanocrystals are studied using x-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy, respectively. We observe PZT NPs and this result matches dynamic light scattering measurements. A solution-based low-temperature process is used to fabricate PZT NP-based devices on an indium tin oxide substrate. The fabricated ferroelectric devices are characterized using various optical and electrical measurements and we verify ferroelectric properties including ferroelectric hysteresis and the ferroelectric photovoltaic effect. Our approach enables low-temperature solution-based processes that could be used for various applications. To the best of our knowledge, this low-temperature solution processed ferroelectric device using PZT NPs is the first successful demonstration of its kind.

Electrical characterisation of ferroelectric field effect transistors based on ferroelectric HfO{sub 2} thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yurchuk, Ekaterina

2015-02-06

Ferroelectric field effect transistor (FeFET) memories based on a new type of ferroelectric material (silicon doped hafnium oxide) were studied within the scope of the present work. Utilisation of silicon doped hafnium oxide (Si:HfO{sub 2}) thin films instead of conventional perovskite ferroelectrics as a functional layer in FeFETs provides compatibility to the CMOS process as well as improved device scalability. The influence of different process parameters on the properties of Si:HfO{sub 2} thin films was analysed in order to gain better insight into the occurrence of ferroelectricity in this system. A subsequent examination of the potential of this material as well as its possible limitations with the respect to the application in non-volatile memories followed. The Si:HfO{sub 2}-based ferroelectric transistors that were fully integrated into the state-of-the-art high-k metal gate CMOS technology were studied in this work for the first time. The memory performance of these devices scaled down to 28 nm gate length was investigated. Special attention was paid to the charge trapping phenomenon shown to significantly affect the device behaviour.

Negative capacitance in a ferroelectric capacitor.

Science.gov (United States)

Khan, Asif Islam; Chatterjee, Korok; Wang, Brian; Drapcho, Steven; You, Long; Serrao, Claudy; Bakaul, Saidur Rahman; Ramesh, Ramamoorthy; Salahuddin, Sayeef

2015-02-01

The Boltzmann distribution of electrons poses a fundamental barrier to lowering energy dissipation in conventional electronics, often termed as Boltzmann Tyranny. Negative capacitance in ferroelectric materials, which stems from the stored energy of a phase transition, could provide a solution, but a direct measurement of negative capacitance has so far been elusive. Here, we report the observation of negative capacitance in a thin, epitaxial ferroelectric film. When a voltage pulse is applied, the voltage across the ferroelectric capacitor is found to be decreasing with time--in exactly the opposite direction to which voltage for a regular capacitor should change. Analysis of this 'inductance'-like behaviour from a capacitor presents an unprecedented insight into the intrinsic energy profile of the ferroelectric material and could pave the way for completely new applications.

Characterization Of Graphene-Ferroelectric Superlattice Hybrid Devices

Science.gov (United States)

Yusuf, Mohammed; Du, Xu; Dawber, Matthew

2013-03-01

Ferroelectric materials possess a spontaneous electrical polarization, which can be controlled by an electric field. A good interface between ferroelectric surface and graphene sheets can introduce a new generation of multifunctional devices, in which the ferroelectric material can be used to control the properties of graphene. In our approach, problems encountered in previous efforts to combine ferroelectric/carbon systems are overcome by the use of artificially layered superlattice materials grown in the form of epitaxial thin films. In these materials the phase transition temperature and dielectric response of the material can be tailored, allowing us to avoid polarization screening by surface absorbates, whilst maintaining an atomically smooth surface and optimal charge doping properties. Using ferroelectric PbTiO3/SrTiO3 superlattices, we have shown ultra-low-voltage operation of graphene field effect devices within +/- 1 V at room temperature. The switching of the graphene field effect transistors is characterized by pronounced resistance hysteresis, suitable for ultra-fast non-volatile electronics. Low temperature characterization confirmed that the coercive field required for the ferroelectric domain switching increases significantly with decreasing temperatures. National Science Foundation (NSF) (grant number 1105202)

Improper ferroelectrics as high-efficiency energy conversion materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wakamatsu, Toru; Tanabe, Kenji; Terasaki, Ichiro; Taniguchi, Hiroki

2017-01-01

An improper ferroelectric is a certain type of ferroelectrics whose primary order parameter is not polarization but another physical quantity such as magnetization. In contrast to a conventional proper ferroelectrics as represented by Pb(Zr,Ti)O_3 and BaTiO_3, the improper ferroelectrics has been inconceivable for practical applications thus far. Herein, we illustrate the great potential of improper ferroelectrics for efficient conversion of temperature fluctuation to electric energy, as demonstrated with (Ca_0_._8_4Sr_0_._1_6)_8[AlO_2]_1_2(MoO_4)_2 (CSAM-16). The present study has experimentally proven that CSAM-16 achieves an excellent electrothermal coupling factor and high electric field sensitivity for pyroelectric energy conversion that approach a practical level for application to self-powered autonomous electronic devices for rapidly spreading wireless sensor networks. The present results provide a novel approach to developing innovative pyroelectric energy harvesting devices using improper ferroelectrics. (copyright 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Ferroelectric BaTiO3 and LiNbO3 Nanoparticles Dispersed in Ferroelectric Liquid Crystal Mixtures: Electrooptic and Dielectric (Postprint)

Science.gov (United States)

2016-10-14

strength for non- doped LF4 and LiNbO3/LF4 nanocolloids at temperature 30C. 146 R. K . SHUKLA ET AL. 6 Distribution A. Approved for public release (PA...AFRL-RX-WP-JA-2017-0210 FERROELECTRIC BaTiO3 AND LiNbO3 NANOPARTICLES DISPERSED IN FERROELECTRIC LIQUID CRYSTAL MIXTURES: ELECTROOPTIC...COMMAND UNITED STATES AIR FORCE Ferroelectric BaTiO3 and LiNbO3 nanoparticles dispersed in ferroelectric liquid crystal mixtures: Electrooptic and

Ultrafast Photovoltaic Response in Ferroelectric Nanolayers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Daranciang, Dan

2012-02-15

We show that light drives large-amplitude structural changes in thin films of the prototypical ferroelectric PbTiO3 via direct coupling to its intrinsic photovoltaic response. Using time-resolved x-ray scattering to visualize atomic displacements on femtosecond timescales, photoinduced changes in the unit-cell tetragonality are observed. These are driven by the motion of photogenerated free charges within the ferroelectric and can be simply explained by a model including both shift and screening currents, associated with the displacement of electrons first antiparallel to and then parallel to the ferroelectric polarization direction.

Ultrafast Photovoltaic Response in Ferroelectric Nanolayers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Daranciang, Dan

2012-01-01

We show that light drives large-amplitude structural changes in thin films of the prototypical ferroelectric PbTiO3 via direct coupling to its intrinsic photovoltaic response. Using time-resolved x-ray scattering to visualize atomic displacements on femtosecond timescales, photoinduced changes in the unit-cell tetragonality are observed. These are driven by the motion of photogenerated free charges within the ferroelectric and can be simply explained by a model including both shift and screening currents, associated with the displacement of electrons first antiparallel to and then parallel to the ferroelectric polarization direction.

Ferroelectric devices, interconnects, and methods of manufacture thereof

KAUST Repository

Alshareef, Husam N.; Unnat, Bhansali; Khan, Mohd Adnan; Saleh, Moussa M.; Odeh, Ihab N.

2013-01-01

A doped electroconductive organic polymer is used for forming the electrode of a ferroelectric device or an interconnect. An exemplary ferroelectric device is a ferrelectric capacitor comprising: a substrate (101); a first electrode (106) disposed on the substrate; a ferroelectric layer (112) disposed on and in contact with the first electrode; and a second electrode (116) disposed on and in contact with the ferroelectric layer, wherein at least one of the first electrode and the second electrode is an organic electrode comprising a doped electroconductive organic polymer, for example DMSO-doped PEDOT-PSS.

Ferroelectric devices, interconnects, and methods of manufacture thereof

KAUST Repository

Alshareef, Husam N.

2013-12-12

A doped electroconductive organic polymer is used for forming the electrode of a ferroelectric device or an interconnect. An exemplary ferroelectric device is a ferrelectric capacitor comprising: a substrate (101); a first electrode (106) disposed on the substrate; a ferroelectric layer (112) disposed on and in contact with the first electrode; and a second electrode (116) disposed on and in contact with the ferroelectric layer, wherein at least one of the first electrode and the second electrode is an organic electrode comprising a doped electroconductive organic polymer, for example DMSO-doped PEDOT-PSS.

Hybrid dual gate ferroelectric memory for multilevel information storage

KAUST Repository

Khan, Yasser; Caraveo-Frescas, Jesus Alfonso; Alshareef, Husam N.

2015-01-01

Here, we report hybrid organic/inorganic ferroelectric memory with multilevel information storage using transparent p-type SnO semiconductor and ferroelectric P(VDF-TrFE) polymer. The dual gate devices include a top ferroelectric field

Improper ferroelectrics as high-efficiency energy conversion materials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wakamatsu, Toru; Tanabe, Kenji; Terasaki, Ichiro; Taniguchi, Hiroki [Department of Physics, Nagoya University, Nagoya 464-8602 (Japan)

2017-05-15

An improper ferroelectric is a certain type of ferroelectrics whose primary order parameter is not polarization but another physical quantity such as magnetization. In contrast to a conventional proper ferroelectrics as represented by Pb(Zr,Ti)O{sub 3} and BaTiO{sub 3}, the improper ferroelectrics has been inconceivable for practical applications thus far. Herein, we illustrate the great potential of improper ferroelectrics for efficient conversion of temperature fluctuation to electric energy, as demonstrated with (Ca{sub 0.84}Sr{sub 0.16}){sub 8}[AlO{sub 2}]{sub 12}(MoO{sub 4}){sub 2} (CSAM-16). The present study has experimentally proven that CSAM-16 achieves an excellent electrothermal coupling factor and high electric field sensitivity for pyroelectric energy conversion that approach a practical level for application to self-powered autonomous electronic devices for rapidly spreading wireless sensor networks. The present results provide a novel approach to developing innovative pyroelectric energy harvesting devices using improper ferroelectrics. (copyright 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Organic non-volatile memories from ferroelectric phase-separated blends

Science.gov (United States)

Asadi, Kamal; de Leeuw, Dago M.; de Boer, Bert; Blom, Paul W. M.

2008-07-01

New non-volatile memories are being investigated to keep up with the organic-electronics road map. Ferroelectric polarization is an attractive physical property as the mechanism for non-volatile switching, because the two polarizations can be used as two binary levels. However, in ferroelectric capacitors the read-out of the polarization charge is destructive. The functionality of the targeted memory should be based on resistive switching. In inorganic ferroelectrics conductivity and ferroelectricity cannot be tuned independently. The challenge is to develop a storage medium in which the favourable properties of ferroelectrics such as bistability and non-volatility can be combined with the beneficial properties provided by semiconductors such as conductivity and rectification. Here we present an integrated solution by blending semiconducting and ferroelectric polymers into phase-separated networks. The polarization field of the ferroelectric modulates the injection barrier at the semiconductor-metal contact. The combination of ferroelectric bistability with (semi)conductivity and rectification allows for solution-processed non-volatile memory arrays with a simple cross-bar architecture that can be read out non-destructively. The concept of an electrically tunable injection barrier as presented here is general and can be applied to other electronic devices such as light-emitting diodes with an integrated on/off switch.

Organic ferroelectric/semiconducting nanowire hybrid layer for memory storage

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cai, R.; Kassa, H.G.; Haouari, R.; Marrani, A.; Geerts, Y.H.; Ruzié, C.; Breemen, A.J.J.M. van; Gelinck, G.H.; Nysten, B.; Hu, Z.; Jonas, A.M.

2016-01-01

Ferroelectric materials are important components of sensors, actuators and non-volatile memories. However, possible device configurations are limited due to the need to provide screening charges to ferroelectric interfaces to avoid depolarization. Here we show that, by alternating ferroelectric and

The origin of ultrahigh piezoelectricity in relaxor-ferroelectric solid solution crystals

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, Fei; Zhang, Shujun; Yang, Tiannan; Xu, Zhuo; Zhang, Nan; Liu, Gang; Wang, Jianjun; Wang, Jianli; Cheng, Zhenxiang; Ye, Zuo-Guang; Luo, Jun; Shrout, Thomas R.; Chen, Long-Qing (Penn); (Xian Jiaotong); (CIW); (Simon); (TRS Techn); (Wollongong)

2016-12-19

The discovery of ultrahigh piezoelectricity in relaxor-ferroelectric solid solution single crystals is a breakthrough in ferroelectric materials. A key signature of relaxor-ferroelectric solid solutions is the existence of polar nanoregions, a nanoscale inhomogeneity, that coexist with normal ferroelectric domains. Despite two decades of extensive studies, the contribution of polar nanoregions to the underlying piezoelectric properties of relaxor ferroelectrics has yet to be established. Here we quantitatively characterize the contribution of polar nanoregions to the dielectric/piezoelectric responses of relaxor-ferroelectric crystals using a combination of cryogenic experiments and phase-field simulations. The contribution of polar nanoregions to the room-temperature dielectric and piezoelectric properties is in the range of 50–80%. A mesoscale mechanism is proposed to reveal the origin of the high piezoelectricity in relaxor ferroelectrics, where the polar nanoregions aligned in a ferroelectric matrix can facilitate polarization rotation. This mechanism emphasizes the critical role of local structure on the macroscopic properties of ferroelectric materials.

The origin of ultrahigh piezoelectricity in relaxor-ferroelectric solid solution crystals.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Fei; Zhang, Shujun; Yang, Tiannan; Xu, Zhuo; Zhang, Nan; Liu, Gang; Wang, Jianjun; Wang, Jianli; Cheng, Zhenxiang; Ye, Zuo-Guang; Luo, Jun; Shrout, Thomas R; Chen, Long-Qing

2016-12-19

The discovery of ultrahigh piezoelectricity in relaxor-ferroelectric solid solution single crystals is a breakthrough in ferroelectric materials. A key signature of relaxor-ferroelectric solid solutions is the existence of polar nanoregions, a nanoscale inhomogeneity, that coexist with normal ferroelectric domains. Despite two decades of extensive studies, the contribution of polar nanoregions to the underlying piezoelectric properties of relaxor ferroelectrics has yet to be established. Here we quantitatively characterize the contribution of polar nanoregions to the dielectric/piezoelectric responses of relaxor-ferroelectric crystals using a combination of cryogenic experiments and phase-field simulations. The contribution of polar nanoregions to the room-temperature dielectric and piezoelectric properties is in the range of 50-80%. A mesoscale mechanism is proposed to reveal the origin of the high piezoelectricity in relaxor ferroelectrics, where the polar nanoregions aligned in a ferroelectric matrix can facilitate polarization rotation. This mechanism emphasizes the critical role of local structure on the macroscopic properties of ferroelectric materials.

Controlling the properties of ferroelectric-nickelate interfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Marshall, Matthew S. J.; Malashevich, Andrei; Disa, Ankit; Han, Myung-Geun; Zhu, Yimei; Ismail-Beigi, Sohrab; Walker, Frederick; Ahn, Charles

2015-03-01

Ferroelectrics are a class of materials that exhibit a stable, reversible polarization making them useful for non-volatile electronic devices. In devices consisting of thin film ferroelectric PZT acting as a gate and a thin film of the conductive oxide LaNiO3 grown on LaAlO3(001) acting as a channel, we have realized a large change in room temperature channel resistance by switching the ferroelectric polarization. The effect of switching the polarization of the ferroelectric is to modify the electronic structure of the interface between the gate and channel, resulting in conduction in the otherwise insulating ferroelectric. Here, we discuss how changing the epitaxial strain and interface termination of LaNiO3 can result in larger changes in resistivity. The epitaxial strain is varied by growing the devices on LaAlO3 for tensile strain and SrTiO3 for compressive strain. An interface termination of either an atomic layer of NiO2 or LaO is achieved via atomic layering using oxygen plasma assisted molecular beam epitaxy (MBE).

Complex Electric-Field Induced Phenomena in Ferroelectric/Antiferroelectric Nanowires

Science.gov (United States)

Herchig, Ryan Christopher

Perovskite ferroelectrics and antiferroelectrics have attracted a lot of attention owing to their potential for device applications including THz sensors, solid state cooling, ultra high density computer memory, and electromechanical actuators to name a few. The discovery of ferroelectricity at the nanoscale provides not only new and exciting possibilities for device miniaturization, but also a way to study the fundamental physics of nanoscale phenomena in these materials. Ferroelectric nanowires show a rich variety of physical characteristics which are advantageous to the design of nanoscale ferroelectric devices such as exotic dipole patterns, a strong dependence of the polarization and phonon frequencies on the electrical and mechanical boundary conditions, as well as a dependence of the transition temperatures on the diameter of the nanowire. Antiferroelectricity also exists at the nanoscale and, due to the proximity in energy of the ferroelectric and antiferroelectric phases, a phase transition from the ferroelectric to the antiferroelectric phase can be facilitated through the application of the appropriate mechanical and electrical boundary conditions. While much progress has been made over the past several decades to understand the nature of ferroelectricity/antiferroelectricity in nanowires, many questions remain unanswered. In particular, little is known about how the truncated dimensions affect the soft mode frequency dynamics or how various electrical and mechanical boundary conditions might change the nature of the phase transitions in these ferroelectric nanowires. Could nanowires offer a distinct advantage for solid state cooling applications? Few studies have been done to elucidate the fundamental physics of antiferroelectric nanowires. How the polarization in ferroelectric nanowires responds to a THz electric field remains relatively underexplored as well. In this work, the aim is to to develop and use computational tools that allow first

Chemical segregation and self polarisation in ferroelectrics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bernard E. Watts

2009-06-01

Full Text Available Chemical partitioning or segregation is commonly encountered in solid-state syntheses. It is driven by compositional, thermal and electric field gradients. These phenomena can be quite extreme in thin films and lead to notable effects on the electrical properties of ferroelectrics. The segregation in ferroelectric thin films will be illustrated and the mechanisms explained in terms of diffusion processes driven by a potential gradient of the oxygen. The hypothesis can also explain self polarisation and imprint in ferroelectric hysteresis.

Stress effects in ferroelectric perovskite thin-films

Science.gov (United States)

Zednik, Ricardo Johann

The exciting class of ferroelectric materials presents the engineer with an array of unique properties that offer promise in a variety of applications; these applications include infra-red detectors ("night-vision imaging", pyroelectricity), micro-electro-mechanical-systems (MEMS, piezoelectricity), and non-volatile memory (NVM, ferroelectricity). Realizing these modern devices often requires perovskite-based ferroelectric films thinner than 100 nm. Two such technologically important material systems are (Ba,Sr)TiO3 (BST), for tunable dielectric devices employed in wireless communications, and Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 (PZT), for ferroelectric non-volatile memory (FeRAM). In general, the material behavior is strongly influenced by the mechanical boundary conditions imposed by the substrate and surrounding layers and may vary considerably from the known bulk behavior. A better mechanistic understanding of these effects is essential for harnessing the full potential of ferroelectric thin-films and further optimizing existing devices. Both materials share a common crystal structure and similar properties, but face unique challenges due to the design parameters of these different applications. Tunable devices often require very low dielectric loss as well as large dielectric tunability. Present results show that the dielectric response of BST thin-films can either resemble a dipole-relaxor or follow the accepted empirical Universal Relaxation Law (Curie-von Schweidler), depending on temperature. These behaviors in a single ferroelectric thin-film system are often thought to be mutually exclusive. In state-of-the-art high density FeRAM, the ferroelectric polarization is at least as important as the dielectric response. It was found that these properties are significantly affected by moderate biaxial tensile and compressive stresses which reversibly alter the ferroelastic domain populations of PZT at room temperature. The 90-degree domain wall motion observed by high resolution

Impact induced depolarization of ferroelectric materials

Science.gov (United States)

Agrawal, Vinamra; Bhattacharya, Kaushik

2018-06-01

We study the large deformation dynamic behavior and the associated nonlinear electro-thermo-mechanical coupling exhibited by ferroelectric materials in adiabatic environments. This is motivated by a ferroelectric generator which involves pulsed power generation by loading the ferroelectric material with a shock, either by impact or a blast. Upon impact, a shock wave travels through the material inducing a ferroelectric to nonpolar phase transition giving rise to a large voltage difference in an open circuit situation or a large current in a closed circuit situation. In the first part of this paper, we provide a general continuum mechanical treatment of the situation assuming a sharp phase boundary that is possibly charged. We derive the governing laws, as well as the driving force acting on the phase boundary. In the second part, we use the derived equations and a particular constitutive relation that describes the ferroelectric to nonpolar phase transition to study a uniaxial plate impact problem. We develop a numerical method where the phase boundary is tracked but other discontinuities are captured using a finite volume method. We compare our results with experimental observations to find good agreement. Specifically, our model reproduces the observed exponential rise of charge as well as the resistance dependent Hugoniot. We conclude with a parameter study that provides detailed insight into various aspects of the problem.

Patterned piezo-, pyro-, and ferroelectricity of poled polymer electrets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Qiu, Xunlin

2010-01-01

Polymers with strong piezo-, pyro-, and ferroelectricity are attractive for a wide range of applications. In particular, semicrystalline ferroelectric polymers are suitable for a large variety of piezo- and pyroelectric transducers or sensors, while amorphous polymers containing chromophore molecules are particularly interesting for photonic devices. Recently, a new class of polymer materials has been added to this family: internally charged cellular space-charge polymer electrets (so-called “ferroelectrets”), whose piezoelectricity can be orders of magnitude higher than that of conventional ferroelectric polymers. Suitable patterning of these materials leads to improved or unusual macroscopic piezo-, pyro-, and ferroelectric or nonlinear optical properties that may be particularly useful for advanced transducer or waveguide applications. In the present paper, the piezo-, pyro-, and ferroelectricity of poled polymers is briefly introduced, an overview on the preparation of polymer electrets with patterned piezo-, pyro-, and ferroelectricity is provided and a survey of selected applications is presented.

Bi-Component Nanostructured Arrays of Co Dots Embedded in Ni80Fe20 Antidot Matrix: Synthesis by Self-Assembling of Polystyrene Nanospheres and Magnetic Properties.

Science.gov (United States)

Coïsson, Marco; Celegato, Federica; Barrera, Gabriele; Conta, Gianluca; Magni, Alessandro; Tiberto, Paola

2017-08-23

A bi-component nanostructured system composed by a Co dot array embedded in a Ni 80 Fe 20 antidot matrix has been prepared by means of the self-assembling polystyrene nanospheres lithography technique. Reference samples constituted by the sole Co dots or Ni 80 Fe 20 antidots have also been prepared, in order to compare their properties with those of the bi-component material. The coupling between the two ferromagnetic elements has been studied by means of magnetic and magneto-transport measurements. The Ni 80 Fe 20 matrix turned out to affect the vortex nucleation field of the Co dots, which in turn modifies the magneto-resistance behaviour of the system and its spinwave properties.

Geometric shape control of thin film ferroelectrics and resulting structures

Science.gov (United States)

McKee, Rodney A.; Walker, Frederick J.

2000-01-01

A monolithic crystalline structure and a method of making involves a semiconductor substrate, such as silicon, and a ferroelectric film, such as BaTiO.sub.3, overlying the surface of the substrate wherein the atomic layers of the ferroelectric film directly overlie the surface of the substrate. By controlling the geometry of the ferroelectric thin film, either during build-up of the thin film or through appropriate treatment of the thin film adjacent the boundary thereof, the in-plane tensile strain within the ferroelectric film is relieved to the extent necessary to permit the ferroelectric film to be poled out-of-plane, thereby effecting in-plane switching of the polarization of the underlying substrate material. The method of the invention includes the steps involved in effecting a discontinuity of the mechanical restraint at the boundary of the ferroelectric film atop the semiconductor substrate by, for example, either removing material from a ferroelectric film which has already been built upon the substrate, building up a ferroelectric film upon the substrate in a mesa-shaped geometry or inducing the discontinuity at the boundary by ion beam deposition techniques.

Fabrication of a nanosize-Pt-embedded membrane electrode assembly to enhance the utilization of Pt in proton exchange membrane fuel cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Choe, Junseok; Kim, Doyoung; Shim, Jinyong; Lee, Inhae; Tak, Yongsug

2011-08-01

A procedure to locate the Pt nanostructure inside the hydrophilic channel of a Nafion membrane was developed in order to enhance Pt utilization in PEMFCs. Nanosize Pt-embedded MEA was constructed by Cu electroless plating and subsequent Pt electrodeposition inside the hydrophilic channels of the Nafion membrane. The metallic Pt nanostructure fabricated inside the membrane was employed as an oxygen reduction catalyst for a PEMFC and facilitated effective use of the hydrophilic channels inside the membrane. Compared to the conventional MEA, a Pt-embedded MEA with only 68% Pt loading showed better PEMFC performance.

Ferroelectrics: A pathway to switchable surface chemistry and catalysis

Science.gov (United States)

Kakekhani, Arvin; Ismail-Beigi, Sohrab; Altman, Eric I.

2016-08-01

It has been known for more than six decades that ferroelectricity can affect a material's surface physics and chemistry thereby potentially enhancing its catalytic properties. Ferroelectrics are a class of materials with a switchable electrical polarization that can affect surface stoichiometry and electronic structure and thus adsorption energies and modes; e.g., molecular versus dissociative. Therefore, ferroelectrics may be utilized to achieve switchable surface chemistry whereby surface properties are not fixed but can be dynamically controlled by, for example, applying an external electric field or modulating the temperature. Several important examples of applications of ferroelectric and polar materials in photocatalysis and heterogeneous catalysis are discussed. In photocatalysis, the polarization direction can control band bending at water/ferroelectric and ferroelectric/semiconductor interfaces, thereby facilitating charge separation and transfer to the electrolyte and enhancing photocatalytic activity. For gas-surface interactions, available results suggest that using ferroelectrics to support catalytically active transition metals and oxides is another way to enhance catalytic activity. Finally, the possibility of incorporating ferroelectric switching into the catalytic cycle itself is described. In this scenario, a dynamic collaboration of two polarization states can be used to drive reactions that have been historically challenging to achieve on surfaces with fixed chemical properties (e.g., direct NOx decomposition and the selective partial oxidation of methane). These predictions show that dynamic modulation of the polarization can help overcome some of the fundamental limitations on catalytic activity imposed by the Sabatier principle.

Static Characteristics of the Ferroelectric Transistor Inverter

Science.gov (United States)

Mitchell, Cody; Laws, crystal; MacLeond, Todd C.; Ho, Fat D.

2010-01-01

The inverter is one of the most fundamental building blocks of digital logic, and it can be used as the foundation for understanding more complex logic gates and circuits. This paper presents the characteristics of an inverter circuit using a ferroelectric field-effect transistor. The voltage transfer characteristics are analyzed with respect to varying parameters such as supply voltage, input voltage, and load resistance. The effects of the ferroelectric layer between the gate and semiconductor are examined, and comparisons are made between the inverters using ferroelectric transistors and those using traditional MOSFETs.

Electrostatic micromotor based on ferroelectric ceramics

Science.gov (United States)

Baginsky, I. L.; Kostsov, E. G.

2004-11-01

A new electrostatic micromotor is described that utilizes the electromechanical energy conversion principle earlier described by the authors. The electromechanical energy conversion is based on reversible electrostatic rolling of thin metallic films (petals) on a ferroelectric surface. The motor's active media are layers of ferroelectric ceramics (about 100 µm in thickness). The characteristics of the electrostatic rolling of the petals on different ceramic surfaces are studied, as well as the dynamic characteristics of the micromotors. It is shown that the use of antiferroelectric material allows one to reach a specific energy capacitance comparable to that of the micromotors based on ferroelectric films and to achieve a specific power of 30-300 µW mm-2.

Field-effect transistor memories based on ferroelectric polymers

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Yujia; Wang, Haiyang; Zhang, Lei; Chen, Xiaomeng; Guo, Yu; Sun, Huabin; Li, Yun

2017-11-01

Field-effect transistors based on ferroelectrics have attracted intensive interests, because of their non-volatile data retention, rewritability, and non-destructive read-out. In particular, polymeric materials that possess ferroelectric properties are promising for the fabrications of memory devices with high performance, low cost, and large-area manufacturing, by virtue of their good solubility, low-temperature processability, and good chemical stability. In this review, we discuss the material characteristics of ferroelectric polymers, providing an update on the current development of ferroelectric field-effect transistors (Fe-FETs) in non-volatile memory applications. Program supported partially by the NSFC (Nos. 61574074, 61774080), NSFJS (No. BK20170075), and the Open Partnership Joint Projects of NSFC-JSPS Bilateral Joint Research Projects (No. 61511140098).

Investigation on the structural stability and electronic properties of InSb nanostructures – A DFT approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. Nagarajan

2014-06-01

Full Text Available The realistic InSb nanostructures namely InSb nanoring, InSb nanocube, InSb nanocube-18, InSb nanosheet, InSb nanocage and InSb nanocube-27 are simulated and optimized successfully using B3LYP/LanL2DZ basis set. The stability of InSb nanostructures is studied in terms of binding energy, vibrational studies and calculated energy. The electronic properties of InSb nanostructures are discussed using ionization potential, electron affinity and HOMO–LUMO gap. Point symmetry and dipole moment of InSb nanostructures are reported. Incorporation of impurity atom in InSb nanostructures is studied using embedding energy. The present study provides the information regarding the enhanced electronic properties of InSb nanostructure which finds its potential importance in microelectronics and optoelectronic devices.

Quantum mechanical studies of complex ferroelectric perovskites

Science.gov (United States)

Ramer, Nicholas John

In many electronic device applications, there is a need to interconvert electrical energy and other types of energy. Ferroelectric materials, which possess a voltage-dependent polarization, can enable this energy conversion process. Because of the broad interest in ferroelectric materials for these devices, there is a critical research effort, both experimental and theoretical, to understand these materials and aid in the development of materials with improved properties. This thesis presents detailed quantum mechanical investigations of the behavior of a complex ferroelectric perovskite under applied stress. In particular, we have chosen to study the solid solution PbZr1-xTix O3 (PZT). Since the study of ferroelectricity involves understanding both its structural and electronic signatures in materials, it has necessitated the development of a novel theoretical technique which improves the accuracy of the pseudopotentials used in our density functional theory calculations as well as a new method for constructing three-dimensional atomistic responses to small amounts of external stress. To examine the material's behavior under larger amounts of stress, we have studied the behavior of a composition of PZT lying near a structural phase boundary. On either side of the phase boundary, the material is characterized by a different polarization direction and may easily be switched between phases by applying external stress. In addition to stress-induced phase transitions, most ferroelectric materials also have composition dependent phase boundaries. Since different compositions of PZT would require increased computational effort, we have formulated an improved virtual crystal approach that makes tractable the study of the entire composition range. Using this method, we have been able to show for the first time via first-principles calculations, a composition dependent phase transition in a ferroelectric material. This thesis has accomplished three important goals: new

Ferroelectric relaxor Ba(TiCe)O3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen Ang; Zhi Jing; Yu Zhi

2002-01-01

The dielectric behaviour of Ba(Ti 1-y Ce y )O 3 solid solutions (y=0-0.3) has been studied. A small amount of Ce doping (y=0.02) has weak influence on the dielectric behaviour of Ba(Ti 1-y Ce y )O 3 . With increasing Ce concentration, three phase transitions of pure BaTiO 3 are pinched into one rounded dielectric peak with frequency dispersion, and the relaxation time follows the Vogel-Fulcher relation. The evolution from a normal ferroelectric to a ferroelectric relaxor is emphasized. High strains (S=∼0.1-0.19%) with a small hysteresis under ac fields are obtained in ferroelectric relaxors Ba(Ti 1-y Ce y )O 3 . The physical mechanism of the relaxation process, the pinching effect of the phase transitions and their influence on the ferroelectric and electrostrictive behaviour are discussed. (author)

Fast Ferroelectric L-Band Tuner for ILC Cavities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hirshfield, Jay L

2010-03-15

Design, analysis, and low-power tests are described on a 1.3 GHz ferroelectric tuner that could find application in the International Linear Collider or in Project X at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory. The tuner configuration utilizes a three-deck sandwich imbedded in a WR-650 waveguide, in which ferroelectric bars are clamped between conducting plates that allow the tuning bias voltage to be applied. Use of a reduced one-third structure allowed tests of critical parameters of the configuration, including phase shift, loss, and switching speed. Issues that were revealed that require improvement include reducing loss tangent in the ferroelectric material, development of a reliable means of brazing ferroelectric elements to copper parts of the tuner, and simplification of the mechanical design of the configuration.

Direct evidence of strong local ferroelectric ordering in a thermoelectric semiconductor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aggarwal, Leena; Sekhon, Jagmeet S.; Arora, Ashima; Sheet, Goutam, E-mail: goutam@iisermohali.ac.in [Department of Physical Sciences, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Mohali (IISER M), Sector 81, S. A. S. Nagar, Manauli PO-140306 (India); Guin, Satya N.; Negi, Devendra S.; Datta, Ranjan; Biswas, Kanishka, E-mail: kanishka@jncasr.ac.in [New Chemistry Unit and International Centre for Materials Science, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Jakkur, Bangalore 560064 (India)

2014-09-15

It is thought that the proposed new family of multi-functional materials, namely, the ferroelectric thermoelectrics may exhibit enhanced functionalities due to the coupling of the thermoelectric parameters with ferroelectric polarization in solids. Therefore, the ferroelectric thermoelectrics are expected to be of immense technological and fundamental significance. As a first step towards this direction, it is most important to identify the existing high performance thermoelectric materials exhibiting ferroelectricity. Herein, through the direct measurement of local polarization switching, we show that the recently discovered thermoelectric semiconductor AgSbSe{sub 2} has local ferroelectric ordering. Using piezo-response force microscopy, we demonstrate the existence of nanometer scale ferroelectric domains that can be switched by external electric field. These observations are intriguing as AgSbSe{sub 2} crystalizes in cubic rock-salt structure with centro-symmetric space group (Fm–3m), and therefore, no ferroelectricity is expected. However, from high resolution transmission electron microscopy measurement, we found the evidence of local superstructure formation which, we believe, leads to local distortion of the centro-symmetric arrangement in AgSbSe{sub 2} and gives rise to the observed ferroelectricity. Stereochemically active 5S{sup 2} lone-pair of Sb may also give rise to local structural distortion thereby creating ferroelectricity in AgSbSe{sub 2}.

Ferroelectric domain continuity over grain boundaries

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mantri, Sukriti; Oddershede, Jette; Damjanovic, Dragan

2017-01-01

Formation and mobility of domain walls in ferroelectric materials is responsible for many of their electrical and mechanical properties. Domain wall continuity across grain boundaries has been observed since the 1950's and is speculated to affect the grain boundary-domain interactions, thereby...... impacting macroscopic ferroelectric properties in polycrystalline systems. However detailed studies of such correlated domain structures across grain boundaries are limited. In this work, we have developed the mathematical requirements for domain wall plane matching at grain boundaries of any given...... orientation. We have also incorporated the effect of grain boundary ferroelectric polarization charge created when any two domains meet at the grain boundary plane. The probability of domain wall continuity for three specific grain misorientations is studied. Use of this knowledge to optimize processing...

Ferroelectric-gate field effect transistor memories device physics and applications

CERN Document Server

Ishiwara, Hiroshi; Okuyama, Masanori; Sakai, Shigeki; Yoon, Sung-Min

2016-01-01

This book provides comprehensive coverage of the materials characteristics, process technologies, and device operations for memory field-effect transistors employing inorganic or organic ferroelectric thin films. This transistor-type ferroelectric memory has interesting fundamental device physics and potentially large industrial impact. Among the various applications of ferroelectric thin films, the development of nonvolatile ferroelectric random access memory (FeRAM) has progressed most actively since the late 1980s and has achieved modest mass production levels for specific applications since 1995. There are two types of memory cells in ferroelectric nonvolatile memories. One is the capacitor-type FeRAM and the other is the field-effect transistor (FET)-type FeRAM. Although the FET-type FeRAM claims ultimate scalability and nondestructive readout characteristics, the capacitor-type FeRAMs have been the main interest for the major semiconductor memory companies, because the ferroelectric FET has fatal handic...

Acoustic study of nano-crystal embedded PbO–P2O5 glass

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Unknown

Keywords. Glasses; acoustical properties; nanostructured materials; glass ceramic. 1. Introduction. During the last two decades, studies of different physical properties of nano-crystal embedded glass matrix have attracted attention of technologists as well as scientists for fabrication of glass ceramic through controlled crysta-.

A hybrid ferroelectric-flash memory cells

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Jae Hyo; Byun, Chang Woo; Seok, Ki Hwan; Kim, Hyung Yoon; Chae, Hee Jae; Lee, Sol Kyu; Son, Se Wan; Ahn, Donghwan; Joo, Seung Ki

2014-09-01

A ferroelectric-flash (F-flash) memory cells having a metal-ferroelectric-nitride-oxynitride-silicon structure are demonstrated, and the ferroelectric materials were perovskite-dominated Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 (PZT) crystallized by Pt gate electrode. The PZT thin-film as a blocking layer improves electrical and memorial performance where programming and erasing mechanism are different from the metal-ferroelectric-insulator-semiconductor device or the conventional silicon-oxide-nitride-oxide-silicon device. F-flash cells exhibit not only the excellent electrical transistor performance, having 442.7 cm2 V-1 s-1 of field-effect mobility, 190 mV dec-1 of substhreshold slope, and 8 × 105 on/off drain current ratio, but also a high reliable memory characteristics, having a large memory window (6.5 V), low-operating voltage (0 to -5 V), faster P/E switching speed (50/500 μs), long retention time (>10 years), and excellent fatigue P/E cycle (>105) due to the boosting effect, amplification effect, and energy band distortion of nitride from the large polarization. All these characteristics correspond to the best performances among conventional flash cells reported so far.

Second harmonic generation in generalized Thue-Morse ferroelectric superlattices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Longxiang; Yang Xiangbo; Chen Tongsheng

2009-01-01

In this paper the second harmonic generation (SHG) in generalized Thue-Morse (GTM(m, n)) ferroelectric superlattices is studied. Under the small-signal approximation, the SHG spectra in both real and reciprocal spaces are investigated. It is found that: (1) only when the structure parameters l, l A , and l B are all chosen to be proper, can SHG in GTM(m, n) ferroelectric superlattices be generated; (2) for Family A of generalized Thue-Morse, GTM(m, 1) ferroelectric systems, with the increase of parameter m, the intense peaks of SHG concentrate on the long wavelength 1.4-1.5μm (the fundamental beam (FB) wavelength is within 0.8-1.5μm), but for Family B of generalized Thue-Morse, GTM(1, n) ferroelectric superlattices, with the increase of parameter n, the intense peaks of SHG concentrate on the middle wavelength 1.1-1.2μm; and (3) for GTM(m, 1) ferroelectric superlattices, the bigger the m, the stronger the relative integral intensity (RII) of SHG would be, but for GTM(1, n) ferroelectric systems, the bigger the n, the weaker the RII of SHG would be.

An Automated Ab Initio Framework for Identifying New Ferroelectrics

Science.gov (United States)

Smidt, Tess; Reyes-Lillo, Sebastian E.; Jain, Anubhav; Neaton, Jeffrey B.

Ferroelectric materials have a wide-range of technological applications including non-volatile RAM and optoelectronics. In this work, we present an automated first-principles search for ferroelectrics. We integrate density functional theory, crystal structure databases, symmetry tools, workflow software, and a custom analysis toolkit to build a library of known and proposed ferroelectrics. We screen thousands of candidates using symmetry relations between nonpolar and polar structure pairs. We use two search strategies 1) polar-nonpolar pairs with the same composition and 2) polar-nonpolar structure type pairs. Results are automatically parsed, stored in a database, and accessible via a web interface showing distortion animations and plots of polarization and total energy as a function of distortion. We benchmark our results against experimental data, present new ferroelectric candidates found through our search, and discuss future work on expanding this search methodology to other material classes such as anti-ferroelectrics and multiferroics.

Piezo-optical and electro-optical behaviour of nematic liquid crystals dispersed in a ferroelectric copolymer matrix

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ganesan, Lakshmi Meena; Wirges, Werner; Gerhard, Reimund; Mellinger, Axel

2010-01-01

Polymer-dispersed liquid crystals (PDLCs) are composite materials that consist of micrometre-sized liquid-crystal (LC) droplets embedded in a polymer matrix. From ferroelectric poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene) (P(VDF-TrFE)) and a nematic LC, PDLC films containing 10 and 60 wt% LC were prepared, and their electro-optical and piezo-optical behaviour was investigated. The electric field that is generated by the application of mechanical stress leads to changes in the transmittance of the PDLC film through a combination of piezoelectric and electro-optical effects. Such a piezo-optical PDLC material may be useful, e.g., in sensing and visualization applications.

Probing nanoscale ferroelectricity by ultraviolet Raman spectroscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Tenne, D A; Bruchhausen, A; Lanzillotti-Kimura, N D; Fainstein, A; Katiyar, R S; Cantarero, A; Soukiassian, A; Vaithyanathan, V; Haeni, J H; Tian, W; Schlom, D G; Choi, K J; Kim, D M; Eom, C B; Sun, H P; Pan, X Q; Li, Y L; Chen, L Q; Jia, Q X; Nakhmanson, S M; Rabe, K M; Xi, X X

2006-09-15

We demonstrated that ultraviolet Raman spectroscopy is an effective technique to measure the transition temperature (Tc) in ferroelectric ultrathin films and superlattices. We showed that one-unit-cell-thick BaTiO3 layers in BaTiO3/SrTiO3 superlattices are not only ferroelectric (with Tc as high as 250 kelvin) but also polarize the quantum paraelectric SrTiO3 layers adjacent to them. Tc was tuned by approximately 500 kelvin by varying the thicknesses of the BaTiO3 and SrTiO3 layers, revealing the essential roles of electrical and mechanical boundary conditions for nanoscale ferroelectricity.

Flexoelectricity: strain gradient effects in ferroelectrics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ma Wenhui [Department of Physics, Shantou Unversity, Shantou, Guangdong 515063 (China)

2007-12-15

Mechanical strain gradient induced polarization effect or flexoelectricity in perovskite-type ferroelectric and relaxor ferroelectric ceramics was investigated. The flexoelectric coefficients measured at room temperature ranged from about 1 {mu} C m{sup -1} for lead zirconate titanate to 100 {mu} C m{sup -1} for barium strontium titanate. Flexoelectric effects were discovered to be sensitive to chemical makeup, phase symmetry, and domain structures. Based on phenomenological discussion and experimental data on flexoelectricity, the present study proposed that mechanical strain gradient field could influence polarization responses in a way analogous to electric field. Flexoelectric coefficients were found to be nonlinearly enhanced by dielectric permittivity and strain gradient. Interfacial mismatch in epitaxial thin films can give rise to high strain gradients, enabling flexoelectric effects to make a significant impact in properly engineered ferroelectric heterostructure systems.

Organic non-volatile memories from ferroelectric phase separated blends

Science.gov (United States)

Asadi, Kamal; de Leeuw, Dago; de Boer, Bert; Blom, Paul

2009-03-01

Ferroelectric polarisation is an attractive physical property for non-volatile binary switching. The functionality of the targeted memory should be based on resistive switching. Conductivity and ferroelectricity however cannot be tuned independently. The challenge is to develop a storage medium in which the favourable properties of ferroelectrics such as bistability and non-volatility can be combined with the beneficial properties provided by semiconductors such as conductivity and rectification. In this contribution we present an integrated solution by blending semiconducting and ferroelectric polymers into phase separated networks. The polarisation field of the ferroelectric modulates the injection barrier at the semiconductor--metal contact. This combination allows for solution-processed non-volatile memory arrays with a simple cross-bar architecture that can be read-out non-destructively. Based on this general concept a non-volatile, reversible switchable Schottky diode with relatively fast programming time of shorter than 100 microseconds, long information retention time of longer than 10^ days, and high programming cycle endurance with non-destructive read-out is demonstrated.

A concept of ferroelectric microparticle propulsion thruster

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yarmolich, D.; Vekselman, V.; Krasik, Ya. E.

2008-01-01

A space propulsion concept using charged ferroelectric microparticles as a propellant is suggested. The measured ferroelectric plasma source thrust, produced mainly by microparticles emission, reaches ∼9x10 -4 N. The obtained trajectories of microparticles demonstrate that the majority of the microparticles are positively charged, which permits further improvement of the thruster

Ferroelectric Phase Diagram of PVDF:PMMA

OpenAIRE

Li, Mengyuan; Stingelin, Natalie; Michels, Jasper J.; Spijkman, Mark-Jan; Asadi, Kamal; Feldman, Kirill; Blom, Paul W. M.; de Leeuw, Dago M.

2012-01-01

We have investigated the ferroelectric phase diagram of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA). The binary nonequilibrium temperature composition diagram was determined and melting of alpha- and beta-phase PVDF was identified. Ferroelectric beta-PVDF:PMMA blend films were made by melting, ice quenching, and subsequent annealing above the glass transition temperature of PMMA, close to the melting temperature of PVDF. Addition of PMMA suppresses the crystallizatio...

Reversible optical control of macroscopic polarization in ferroelectrics

Science.gov (United States)

Rubio-Marcos, Fernando; Ochoa, Diego A.; Del Campo, Adolfo; García, Miguel A.; Castro, Germán R.; Fernández, José F.; García, José E.

2018-01-01

The optical control of ferroic properties is a subject of fascination for the scientific community, because it involves the establishment of new paradigms for technology1-9. Domains and domain walls are known to have a great impact on the properties of ferroic materials1-24. Progress is currently being made in understanding the behaviour of the ferroelectric domain wall, especially regarding its dynamic control10-12,17,19. New research is being conducted to find effective methodologies capable of modulating ferroelectric domain motion for future electronics. However, the practical use of ferroelectric domain wall motion should be both stable and reversible (rewritable) and, in particular, be able to produce a macroscopic response that can be monitored easily12,17. Here, we show that it is possible to achieve a reversible optical change of ferroelectric domains configuration. This effect leads to the tuning of macroscopic polarization and its related properties by means of polarized light, a non-contact external control. Although this is only the first step, it nevertheless constitutes the most crucial one in the long and complex process of developing the next generation of photo-stimulated ferroelectric devices.

Perovskite oxides for visible-light-absorbing ferroelectric and photovoltaic materials.

Science.gov (United States)

Grinberg, Ilya; West, D Vincent; Torres, Maria; Gou, Gaoyang; Stein, David M; Wu, Liyan; Chen, Guannan; Gallo, Eric M; Akbashev, Andrew R; Davies, Peter K; Spanier, Jonathan E; Rappe, Andrew M

2013-11-28

Ferroelectrics have recently attracted attention as a candidate class of materials for use in photovoltaic devices, and for the coupling of light absorption with other functional properties. In these materials, the strong inversion symmetry breaking that is due to spontaneous electric polarization promotes the desirable separation of photo-excited carriers and allows voltages higher than the bandgap, which may enable efficiencies beyond the maximum possible in a conventional p-n junction solar cell. Ferroelectric oxides are also stable in a wide range of mechanical, chemical and thermal conditions and can be fabricated using low-cost methods such as sol-gel thin-film deposition and sputtering. Recent work has shown how a decrease in ferroelectric layer thickness and judicious engineering of domain structures and ferroelectric-electrode interfaces can greatly increase the current harvested from ferroelectric absorber materials, increasing the power conversion efficiency from about 10(-4) to about 0.5 per cent. Further improvements in photovoltaic efficiency have been inhibited by the wide bandgaps (2.7-4 electronvolts) of ferroelectric oxides, which allow the use of only 8-20 per cent of the solar spectrum. Here we describe a family of single-phase solid oxide solutions made from low-cost and non-toxic elements using conventional solid-state methods: [KNbO3]1 - x[BaNi1/2Nb1/2O3 - δ]x (KBNNO). These oxides exhibit both ferroelectricity and a wide variation of direct bandgaps in the range 1.1-3.8 electronvolts. In particular, the x = 0.1 composition is polar at room temperature, has a direct bandgap of 1.39 electronvolts and has a photocurrent density approximately 50 times larger than that of the classic ferroelectric (Pb,La)(Zr,Ti)O3 material. The ability of KBNNO to absorb three to six times more solar energy than the current ferroelectric materials suggests a route to viable ferroelectric semiconductor-based cells for solar energy conversion and

Ferroelectricity in high-density H{sub 2}O ice

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Caracas, Razvan, E-mail: razvan.caracas@ens-lyon.fr, E-mail: rhemley@ciw.edu [CNRS, Laboratoire de Géologie de Lyon UMR5276, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, 46, alleé d’Italie, Université Claude-Bernard Lyon 1, Université de Lyon, 69364 Lyon cedex 07 (France); Hemley, Russell J., E-mail: razvan.caracas@ens-lyon.fr, E-mail: rhemley@ciw.edu [Geophysical Laboratory, 5251 Broad Branch Road NW, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, DC 20015 (United States)

2015-04-07

The origin of longstanding anomalies in experimental studies of the dense solid phases of H{sub 2}O ices VII, VIII, and X is examined using a combination of first-principles theoretical methods. We find that a ferroelectric variant of ice VIII is energetically competitive with the established antiferroelectric form under pressure. The existence of domains of the ferroelectric form within anti-ferroelectric ice can explain previously observed splittings in x-ray diffraction data. The ferroelectric form is stabilized by density and is accompanied by the onset of spontaneous polarization. The presence of local electric fields triggers the preferential parallel orientation of the water molecules in the structure, which could be stabilized in bulk using new high-pressure techniques.

NiCo2S4 nanorod embedded rGO sheets as electrodes for supercapacitor

Science.gov (United States)

Sarkar, Aatreyee; Bera, Supriya; Chakraborty, Amit Kumar

2018-04-01

We report the synthesis of a hybrid nanostructure based on NiCo2S4 and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) following a facile hydrothermal method. X-ray diffraction (XRD), and electron microscopy (FESEM and HRTEM) analyses showed rod-like NiCo2S4 nanostructures embedded in rGO sheets. The electrochemical analysis of the synthesized nanohybrid using cyclic voltammetry (CV) and galvanostatic charge discharge (GCD) revealed specific capacitance of 410 F/gm indicating its suitability as a good electrode material for supercapacitor.

Removable polytetrafluoroethylene template based epitaxy of ferroelectric copolymer thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Xia, Wei; Chen, Qiusong; Zhang, Jian; Wang, Hui; Cheng, Qian; Jiang, Yulong; Zhu, Guodong

2018-04-01

In recent years ferroelectric polymers have shown their great potentials in organic and flexible electronics. To meet the requirements of high-performance and low energy consumption of novel electronic devices and systems, structural and electrical properties of ferroelectric polymer thin films are expected to be further optimized. One possible way is to realize epitaxial growth of ferroelectric thin films via removable high-ordered polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) templates. Here two key parameters in epitaxy process, annealing temperature and applied pressure, are systematically studied and thus optimized through structural and electrical measurements of ferroelectric copolymer thin films. Experimental results indicate that controlled epitaxial growth is realized via suitable combination of both parameters. Annealing temperature above the melting point of ferroelectric copolymer films is required, and simultaneously moderate pressure (around 2.0 MPa here) should be applied. Over-low pressure (around 1.0 MPa here) usually results in the failure of epitaxy process, while over-high pressure (around 3.0 MPa here) often results in residual of PTFE templates on ferroelectric thin films.

Tunable Microwave Filter Design Using Thin-Film Ferroelectric Varactors

Science.gov (United States)

Haridasan, Vrinda

Military, space, and consumer-based communication markets alike are moving towards multi-functional, multi-mode, and portable transceiver units. Ferroelectric-based tunable filter designs in RF front-ends are a relatively new area of research that provides a potential solution to support wideband and compact transceiver units. This work presents design methodologies developed to optimize a tunable filter design for system-level integration, and to improve the performance of a ferroelectric-based tunable bandpass filter. An investigative approach to find the origins of high insertion loss exhibited by these filters is also undertaken. A system-aware design guideline and figure of merit for ferroelectric-based tunable band- pass filters is developed. The guideline does not constrain the filter bandwidth as long as it falls within the range of the analog bandwidth of a system's analog to digital converter. A figure of merit (FOM) that optimizes filter design for a specific application is presented. It considers the worst-case filter performance parameters and a tuning sensitivity term that captures the relation between frequency tunability and the underlying material tunability. A non-tunable parasitic fringe capacitance associated with ferroelectric-based planar capacitors is confirmed by simulated and measured results. The fringe capacitance is an appreciable proportion of the tunable capacitance at frequencies of X-band and higher. As ferroelectric-based tunable capac- itors form tunable resonators in the filter design, a proportionally higher fringe capacitance reduces the capacitance tunability which in turn reduces the frequency tunability of the filter. Methods to reduce the fringe capacitance can thus increase frequency tunability or indirectly reduce the filter insertion-loss by trading off the increased tunability achieved to lower loss. A new two-pole tunable filter topology with high frequency tunability (> 30%), steep filter skirts, wide stopband

A novel readout integrated circuit for ferroelectric FPA detector

Science.gov (United States)

Bai, Piji; Li, Lihua; Ji, Yulong; Zhang, Jia; Li, Min; Liang, Yan; Hu, Yanbo; Li, Songying

2017-11-01

Uncooled infrared detectors haves some advantages such as low cost light weight low power consumption, and superior reliability, compared with cryogenically cooled ones Ferroelectric uncooled focal plane array(FPA) are being developed for its AC response and its high reliability As a key part of the ferroelectric assembly the ROIC determines the performance of the assembly. A top-down design model for uncooled ferroelectric readout integrated circuit(ROIC) has been developed. Based on the optical thermal and electrical properties of the ferroelectric detector the RTIA readout integrated circuit is designed. The noise bandwidth of RTIA readout circuit has been developed and analyzed. A novel high gain amplifier, a high pass filter and a low pass filter circuits are designed on the ROIC. In order to improve the ferroelectric FPA package performance and decrease of package cost a temperature sensor is designed on the ROIC chip At last the novel RTIA ROIC is implemented on 0.6μm 2P3M CMOS silicon techniques. According to the experimental chip test results the temporal root mean square(RMS)noise voltage is about 1.4mV the sensitivity of the on chip temperature sensor is 0.6 mV/K from -40°C to 60°C the linearity performance of the ROIC chip is better than 99% Based on the 320×240 RTIA ROIC, a 320×240 infrared ferroelectric FPA is fabricated and tested. Test results shows that the 320×240 RTIA ROIC meets the demand of infrared ferroelectric FPA.

Ultrafast Photovoltaic Response in Ferroelectric Nanolayers

Science.gov (United States)

2016-04-19

the free energy of the system [3,4,8]. Intensive research has been aimed at bypassing the intrinsic size limits imposed by the depolarization field...Page 1 of 21   Ultrafast photovoltaic response in ferroelectric nanolayers Dan Daranciang1,2, Matthew J. Highland3, Haidan Wen4, Steve M. Young5...ferroelectric PbTiO3 via direct coupling to its intrinsic photovoltaic response. Using time-resolved x-ray scattering to visualize atomic displacements on

Functional Properties of Polydomain Ferroelectric Oxide Thin Films

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Houwman, Evert Pieter; Vergeer, Kurt; Koster, Gertjan; Rijnders, Augustinus J.H.M.; Nishikawa, H.; Iwata, N.; Endo, T.; Takamura, Y.; Lee, G-H.; Mele, P.

2017-01-01

The properties of a ferroelectric, (001)-oriented, thin film clamped to a substrate are investigated analytically and numerically. The emphasis is on the tetragonal, polydomain, ferroelectric phase, using a three domain structure, as is observed experimentally, instead of the two-domain structure

Depolarization corrections to the coercive field in thin-film ferroelectrics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dawber, M; Chandra, P; Littlewood, P B; Scott, J F

2003-01-01

Empirically, the coercive field needed to reverse the polarization in a ferroelectric increases with decreasing film thickness. For ferroelectric films of 100 μm to 100 nm in thickness the coercive field has been successfully described by a semi-empirical scaling law. Accounting for depolarization corrections, we show that this scaling behaviour is consistent with field measurements of ultrathin ferroelectric capacitors down to one nanometre in film thickness. Our results also indicate that the minimum film thickness, determined by a polarization instability, can be tuned by the choice of electrodes, and recommendations for next-generation ferroelectric devices are discussed. (letter to the editor)

Depolarization corrections to the coercive field in thin-film ferroelectrics

CERN Document Server

Dawber, M; Littlewood, P B; Scott, J F

2003-01-01

Empirically, the coercive field needed to reverse the polarization in a ferroelectric increases with decreasing film thickness. For ferroelectric films of 100 mu m to 100 nm in thickness the coercive field has been successfully described by a semi-empirical scaling law. Accounting for depolarization corrections, we show that this scaling behaviour is consistent with field measurements of ultrathin ferroelectric capacitors down to one nanometre in film thickness. Our results also indicate that the minimum film thickness, determined by a polarization instability, can be tuned by the choice of electrodes, and recommendations for next-generation ferroelectric devices are discussed. (letter to the editor)

Raman analysis of ferroelectric switching in niobium-doped lead zirconate titanate thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ferrari, P.; Ramos-Moore, E.; Guitar, M.A.; Cabrera, A.L.

2014-01-01

Characteristic Raman vibration modes of niobium-doped lead zirconate titanate (PNZT) are studied as a function of ferroelectric domain switching. The microstructure of PNZT is characterized by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. Ferroelectric switching is achieved by applying voltages between the top (Au) and bottom (Pt) electrodes, while acquiring the Raman spectra in situ. Vibrational active modes associated with paraelectric and ferroelectric phases are identified after measuring above and below the ferroelectric Curie temperature, respectively. Changes in the relative intensities of the Raman peaks are observed as a function of the switching voltage. The peak area associated with the ferroelectric modes is analyzed as a function of the applied voltage within one ferroelectric polarization loop, showing local maxima around the coercive voltage. This behavior can be understood in terms of the correlation between vibrational and structural properties, since ferroelectric switching modifies the interaction between the body-centered atom (Zr, Ti or Nb) and the Pb–O lattice. - Highlights: • Electric fields induce structural distortions on ferroelectric perovskites. • Ferroelectric capacitor was fabricated to perform hysteresis loops. • Raman analysis was performed in situ during ferroelectric switching. • Raman modes show hysteresis and inflections around the coercive voltages. • Data can be understood in terms of vibrational–structural correlations

Proceedings of the 8th International Symposium on Applications of Ferroelectrics

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, M.; Safari, A.; Kingon, A.; Haertling, G.

1993-02-01

The eighth International Symposium on the Applications of Ferroelectrics was held in Greenville, SC, on August 30 to Sept 2, 1992. It was attended by approximately 260 scientists and engineers who presented nearly 200 oral and poster papers. The three plenary presentations covered ferroelectric materials which are currently moving into commercial exploitation or have strong potential to do so. These were (1) pyroelectric imaging, (2) ferroelectric materials integrated with silicon for use as micromotors and microsensors and (3) research activity in Japan on high permittivity materials for DRAM's. Invited papers covered such subjects as pyroelectric and electrooptic properties of thin films, photorefractive effects, ferroelectric polymers, piezoelectric transducers, processing of ferroelectrics, domain switching in ferroelectrics, thin film memories, thin film vacuum deposition techniques and the fabrication of chemically prepared PZT and PLZT thin films. The papers continued to reflect the large interest in ferroelectric thin films. It was encouraging that there have been substantial strides made in both the processing and understanding of the films in the last two years. It was equally clear, however, that much still remains to be done before reliable thin film devices will be available in the marketplace.

Giant electroresistance of super-tetragonal BiFeO3-based ferroelectric tunnel junctions.

Science.gov (United States)

Yamada, Hiroyuki; Garcia, Vincent; Fusil, Stéphane; Boyn, Sören; Marinova, Maya; Gloter, Alexandre; Xavier, Stéphane; Grollier, Julie; Jacquet, Eric; Carrétéro, Cécile; Deranlot, Cyrile; Bibes, Manuel; Barthélémy, Agnès

2013-06-25

Ferroelectric tunnel junctions enable a nondestructive readout of the ferroelectric state via a change of resistance induced by switching the ferroelectric polarization. We fabricated submicrometer solid-state ferroelectric tunnel junctions based on a recently discovered polymorph of BiFeO3 with giant axial ratio ("T-phase"). Applying voltage pulses to the junctions leads to the highest resistance changes (OFF/ON ratio >10,000) ever reported with ferroelectric tunnel junctions. Along with the good retention properties, this giant effect reinforces the interest in nonvolatile memories based on ferroelectric tunnel junctions. We also show that the changes in resistance scale with the nucleation and growth of ferroelectric domains in the ultrathin BiFeO3 (imaged by piezoresponse force microscopy), thereby suggesting potential as multilevel memory cells and memristors.

Temperature dependence of electronic transport property in ferroelectric polymer films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhao, X.L.; Wang, J.L., E-mail: jlwang@mail.sitp.ac.cn; Tian, B.B.; Liu, B.L.; Zou, Y.H.; Wang, X.D.; Sun, S.; Sun, J.L., E-mail: jlsun@mail.sitp.ac.cn; Meng, X.J.; Chu, J.H.

2014-10-15

Highlights: • The ferroelectric polymer was fabricated by Langmuir–Blodgett method. • The electrons as the dominant injected carrier were conformed in the ferroelectric polymer films. • The leakage current conduction mechanisms in ferroelectric polymer were investigated. - Abstract: The leakage current mechanism of ferroelectric copolymer of polyvinylidene fluoride with trifluoroethylene prepared by Langmuir–Blodgett was investigated in the temperature range from 100 K to 350 K. The electron as the dominant injected carrier was observed in the ferroelectric copolymer films. The transport mechanisms in copolymer strongly depend on the temperature and applied voltage. From 100 K to 200 K, Schottky emission dominates the conduction. With temperature increasing, the Frenkel–Poole emission instead of the Schottky emission to conduct the carrier transport. When the temperature gets to 260 K, the leakage current becomes independent of temperature, and the space charge limited current conduction was observed.

Hybrid dual gate ferroelectric memory for multilevel information storage

KAUST Repository

Khan, Yasser

2015-01-01

Here, we report hybrid organic/inorganic ferroelectric memory with multilevel information storage using transparent p-type SnO semiconductor and ferroelectric P(VDF-TrFE) polymer. The dual gate devices include a top ferroelectric field-effect transistor (FeFET) and a bottom thin-film transistor (TFT). The devices are all fabricated at low temperatures (∼200°C), and demonstrate excellent performance with high hole mobility of 2.7 cm2 V-1 s-1, large memory window of ∼18 V, and a low sub-threshold swing ∼-4 V dec-1. The channel conductance of the bottom-TFT and the top-FeFET can be controlled independently by the bottom and top gates, respectively. The results demonstrate multilevel nonvolatile information storage using ferroelectric memory devices with good retention characteristics.

Apparent vanishing of ferroelectricity in nanostructured BiScO3PbTiO3

OpenAIRE

Amorín , H; Jiménez , R; Ricote , J; Hungría , T; Castro , A; Algueró , M

2010-01-01

Abstract Nanostructured ceramics of high-temperature piezoelectric 0.375BiScO 3 -0.625PbTiO 3 were prepared by spark plasma sintering of nanocrystalline powders obtained by mechanosynthesis. The macroscopic electrical properties were characterized on dense ceramics with decreasing average grain size down to 28 nm. Results indicate that the electric field is screened by the electrically insulating grain boundaries at the nanoscale, which needs to be considered when discussing size effects i...

An Ultrathin Single Crystalline Relaxor Ferroelectric Integrated on a High Mobility Semiconductor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moghadam, Reza M. [Department; Xiao, Zhiyong [Department; Ahmadi-Majlan, Kamyar [Department; Grimley, Everett D. [Department; Bowden, Mark [Environmental; amp, Biological Sciences Directorate, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington 99352, United States; Ong, Phuong-Vu [Physical; amp, Computational Sciences Directorate, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington 99352, United States; Chambers, Scott A. [Physical; amp, Computational Sciences Directorate, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington 99352, United States; Lebeau, James M. [Department; Hong, Xia [Department; Sushko, Peter V. [Physical; amp, Computational Sciences Directorate, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington 99352, United States; Ngai, Joseph H. [Department

2017-09-13

The epitaxial growth of multifunctional oxides on semiconductors has opened a pathway to introduce new functionalities to semiconductor device technologies. In particular, ferroelectric materials integrated on semiconductors could lead to low-power field-effect devices that can be used for logic or memory. Essential to realizing such field-effect devices is the development of ferroelectric metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) capacitors, in which the polarization of a ferroelectric gate is coupled to the surface potential of a semiconducting channel. Here we demonstrate that ferroelectric MOS capacitors can be realized using single crystalline SrZrxTi1-xO3 (x= 0.7) that has been epitaxially grown on Ge. We find that the ferroelectric properties of SrZrxTi1-xO3 are exceptionally robust, as gate layers as thin as 5 nm give rise to hysteretic capacitance-voltage characteristics that are 2 V in width. The development of ferroelectric MOS capacitors with gate thicknesses that are technologically relevant opens a pathway to realize scalable ferroelectric field-effect devices.

Why is the electrocaloric effect so small in ferroelectrics?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. G. Guzmán-Verri

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Ferroelectrics are attractive candidate materials for environmentally friendly solid state refrigeration free of greenhouse gases. Their thermal response upon variations of external electric fields is largest in the vicinity of their phase transitions, which may occur near room temperature. The magnitude of the effect, however, is too small for useful cooling applications even when they are driven close to dielectric breakdown. Insight from microscopic theory is therefore needed to characterize materials and provide guiding principles to search for new ones with enhanced electrocaloric performance. Here, we derive from well-known microscopic models of ferroelectricity meaningful figures of merit for a wide class of ferroelectric materials. Such figures of merit provide insight into the relation between the strength of the effect and the characteristic interactions of ferroelectrics such as dipolar forces. We find that the long range nature of these interactions results in a small effect. A strategy is proposed to make it larger by shortening the correlation lengths of fluctuations of polarization. In addition, we bring into question other widely used but empirical figures of merit and facilitate understanding of the recently observed secondary broad peak in the electrocalorics of relaxor ferroelectrics.

A prediction of rate-dependent behaviour in ferroelectric polycrystals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Sang-Joo

2007-01-01

Rate-dependent behaviour of a polycrystalline ferroelectric material is predicted based on thermal activation theory and a representative volume element model. First, the behaviour of a ferroelectric single crystal is calculated from a recently proposed three-dimensional free energy model [S.J. Kim, S. Seelecke, Int. J. Solids Struct. 44 (2007) 1196-1209]. Then, from the calculated single crystal responses, poling behaviour of a ferroelectric polycrystal is obtained in three different ways, two representative volume element models and Gaussian integration method. It is found that a dodecahedron representative volume element consisting of 210 crystallites is the best choice among the three methods. Finally, the behaviour of a ferroelectric polycrystal under various electric and stress loads is calculated using the chosen RVE model. The calculated responses are compared qualitatively with experimental observations, and the effects of crystal orientation and polycrystallinity are discussed

Structural, dielectric and ferroelectric characterization of PZT thin films

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Araújo E.B.

1999-01-01

Full Text Available In this work ferroelectric thin films of PZT were prepared by the oxide precursor method, deposited on Pt/Si substrate. Films of 0.5 mm average thickness were obtained. Electrical and ferroelectric characterization were carried out in these films. The measured value of the dielectric constant for films was 455. Ferroelectricity was confirmed by Capacitance-Voltage (C-V characteristics and P-E hysteresis loops. Remanent polarization for films presented value around 5.0 µC/cm2 and a coercive field of 88.8 kV/cm.

Surface engineering of ferroelectric polymer for the enhanced electrical performance of organic transistor memory

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Do-Kyung; Lee, Gyu-Jeong; Lee, Jae-Hyun; Kim, Min-Hoi; Bae, Jin-Hyuk

2018-05-01

We suggest a viable surface control method to improve the electrical properties of organic nonvolatile memory transistors. For viable surface control, the surface of the ferroelectric insulator in the memory field-effect transistors was modified using a smooth-contact-curing process. For the modification of the ferroelectric polymer, during the curing of the ferroelectric insulators, the smooth surface of a soft elastomer contacts intimately with the ferroelectric surface. This smooth-contact-curing process reduced the surface roughness of the ferroelectric insulator without degrading its ferroelectric properties. The reduced roughness of the ferroelectric insulator increases the mobility of the organic field-effect transistor by approximately eight times, which results in a high memory on–off ratio and a low-voltage reading operation.

High-performance solution-processed polymer ferroelectric field-effect transistors

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Naber, RCG; Tanase, C; Blom, PWM; Gelinck, GH; Marsman, AW; Touwslager, FJ; Setayesh, S; De Leeuw, DM; Naber, Ronald C.G.; Gelinck, Gerwin H.; Marsman, Albert W.; Touwslager, Fred J.

We demonstrate a rewritable, non-volatile memory device with flexible plastic active layers deposited from solution. The memory device is a ferroelectric field-effect transistor (FeFET) made with a ferroelectric fluoropolymer and a bisalkoxy-substituted poly(p-phenylene vinylene) semiconductor

Ferroelectric tunneling element and memory applications which utilize the tunneling element

Science.gov (United States)

Kalinin, Sergei V [Knoxville, TN; Christen, Hans M [Knoxville, TN; Baddorf, Arthur P [Knoxville, TN; Meunier, Vincent [Knoxville, TN; Lee, Ho Nyung [Oak Ridge, TN

2010-07-20

A tunneling element includes a thin film layer of ferroelectric material and a pair of dissimilar electrically-conductive layers disposed on opposite sides of the ferroelectric layer. Because of the dissimilarity in composition or construction between the electrically-conductive layers, the electron transport behavior of the electrically-conductive layers is polarization dependent when the tunneling element is below the Curie temperature of the layer of ferroelectric material. The element can be used as a basis of compact 1R type non-volatile random access memory (RAM). The advantages include extremely simple architecture, ultimate scalability and fast access times generic for all ferroelectric memories.

Guest–host interaction in ferroelectric liquid crystal–nanoparticle

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Ferroelectric Cu-doped ZnO (Cu–ZnO) nanoparticles have been added to the pure ferroelectric liquid crystal (FLC) Felix 17/100. The nanoparticles are bigger in size as compared to FLC molecules; therefore, they distort the existing geometry of FLC matrix and set up an antiparallel correlation with the dipole moments of the ...

Ferroelectrics under the Synchrotron Light: A Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luis E. Fuentes-Cobas

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Currently, an intensive search for high-performance lead-free ferroelectric materials is taking place. ABO3 perovskites (A = Ba, Bi, Ca, K and Na; B = Fe, Nb, Ti, and Zr appear as promising candidates. Understanding the structure–function relationship is mandatory, and, in this field, the roles of long- and short-range crystal orders and interactions are decisive. In this review, recent advances in the global and local characterization of ferroelectric materials by synchrotron light diffraction, scattering and absorption are analyzed. Single- and poly-crystal synchrotron diffraction studies allow high-resolution investigations regarding the long-range average position of ions and subtle global symmetry break-downs. Ferroelectric materials, under the action of electric fields, undergo crystal symmetry, crystallite/domain orientation distribution and strain condition transformations. Methodological aspects of monitoring these processes are discussed. Two-dimensional diffraction clarify larger scale ordering: polycrystal texture is measured from the intensities distribution along the Debye rings. Local order is investigated by diffuse scattering (DS and X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS experiments. DS provides information about thermal, chemical and displacive low-dimensional disorders. XAFS investigation of ferroelectrics reveals local B-cation off-centering and oxidation state. This technique has the advantage of being element-selective. Representative reports of the mentioned studies are described.

Ferroelectrics under the Synchrotron Light: A Review

Science.gov (United States)

Fuentes-Cobas, Luis E.; Montero-Cabrera, María E.; Pardo, Lorena; Fuentes-Montero, Luis

2015-01-01

Currently, an intensive search for high-performance lead-free ferroelectric materials is taking place. ABO3 perovskites (A = Ba, Bi, Ca, K and Na; B = Fe, Nb, Ti, and Zr) appear as promising candidates. Understanding the structure–function relationship is mandatory, and, in this field, the roles of long- and short-range crystal orders and interactions are decisive. In this review, recent advances in the global and local characterization of ferroelectric materials by synchrotron light diffraction, scattering and absorption are analyzed. Single- and poly-crystal synchrotron diffraction studies allow high-resolution investigations regarding the long-range average position of ions and subtle global symmetry break-downs. Ferroelectric materials, under the action of electric fields, undergo crystal symmetry, crystallite/domain orientation distribution and strain condition transformations. Methodological aspects of monitoring these processes are discussed. Two-dimensional diffraction clarify larger scale ordering: polycrystal texture is measured from the intensities distribution along the Debye rings. Local order is investigated by diffuse scattering (DS) and X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) experiments. DS provides information about thermal, chemical and displacive low-dimensional disorders. XAFS investigation of ferroelectrics reveals local B-cation off-centering and oxidation state. This technique has the advantage of being element-selective. Representative reports of the mentioned studies are described. PMID:28787814

Concurrent transition of ferroelectric and magnetic ordering near room temperature.

Science.gov (United States)

Ko, Kyung-Tae; Jung, Min Hwa; He, Qing; Lee, Jin Hong; Woo, Chang Su; Chu, Kanghyun; Seidel, Jan; Jeon, Byung-Gu; Oh, Yoon Seok; Kim, Kee Hoon; Liang, Wen-I; Chen, Hsiang-Jung; Chu, Ying-Hao; Jeong, Yoon Hee; Ramesh, Ramamoorthy; Park, Jae-Hoon; Yang, Chan-Ho

2011-11-29

Strong spin-lattice coupling in condensed matter gives rise to intriguing physical phenomena such as colossal magnetoresistance and giant magnetoelectric effects. The phenomenological hallmark of such a strong spin-lattice coupling is the manifestation of a large anomaly in the crystal structure at the magnetic transition temperature. Here we report that the magnetic Néel temperature of the multiferroic compound BiFeO(3) is suppressed to around room temperature by heteroepitaxial misfit strain. Remarkably, the ferroelectric state undergoes a first-order transition to another ferroelectric state simultaneously with the magnetic transition temperature. Our findings provide a unique example of a concurrent magnetic and ferroelectric transition at the same temperature among proper ferroelectrics, taking a step toward room temperature magnetoelectric applications.

Nanocomposites with embedded structures for lithium-ion batteries

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Zichao

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have been widely employed in portable electronics and are rapidly expanding into emerging markets such as hybrid and electric vehicles and potentially electric grid storage. These new opportunities create new challenges for LIBs and further improvement of specific energy, cycling performance and rate capability are required. A major strategy in performance enhancement for the electrode materials involves the creation of carbon composites to provide mechanical buffering of active material and to improve electrical conductivity. In the current work, a platform is developed for creating functional hybrid materials by copolymerization of organic molecules and inorganic compounds followed by thermal pyrolysis, and the approach yields nanostructured composites in which nanoparticles are uniformly embedded in a porous, partially graphitic carbon matrix. Depending upon the chemistry of the starting materials, nanocomposites with embedded structures created using the approach are attractive as anode or cathode materials for next-generation rechargeable lithium battery systems. The platform is very versatile and through ex situ conversion or utilization of multiple precursors, can be applied to various classes of materials including metal oxides (single or mixed), metals, metal sulfides, alloys, metalloids, phosphates, etc. The approach also lends itself to the development of scalable processes for production of nanostructured battery materials. Mechanistic analysis was performed and reveals that the performance enhancement of the embedded nanocomposite configuration is mainly brought about by the mechanical buffering effect offered by the carbon matrix. The active material loading was shown to be an important factor in the design of the composites as electrode materials. In addition to the polymerization-based approach, other in situ methods such as one based on spray pyrolysis are also explored and demonstrate the versatility of the in situ

Polarization-coupled tunable resistive behavior in oxide ferroelectric heterostructures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gruverman, Alexei [Univ. of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE (United States); Tsymbal, Evgeny Y. [Univ. of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE (United States); Eom, Chang-Beom [Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)

2017-05-03

This research focuses on investigation of the physical mechanism of the electrically and mechanically tunable resistive behavior in oxide ferroelectric heterostructures with engineered interfaces realized via a strong coupling of ferroelectric polarization with tunneling electroresistance and metal-insulator (M-I) transitions. This report describes observation of electrically conductive domain walls in semiconducting ferroelectrics, voltage-free control of resistive switching and demonstration of a new mechanism of electrical control of 2D electron gas (2DEG) at oxide interfaces. The research goals are achieved by creating strong synergy between cutting-edge fabrication of epitaxial single-crystalline complex oxides, nanoscale electrical characterization by scanning probe microscopy and theoretical modeling of the observed phenomena. The concept of the ferroelectric devices with electrically and mechanically tunable nonvolatile resistance represents a new paradigm shift in realization of the next-generation of non-volatile memory devices and low-power logic switches.

On bistable states retention in ferroelectric Langmuir-Blodgett films

Science.gov (United States)

Geivandov, A. R.; Palto, S. P.; Yudin, S. G.; Fridkin, V. M.; Blinov, L. M.; Ducharme, S.

2003-08-01

A new insight into the nature of ferroelectricity is emerging from the study of ultra-thin ferroelectric films prepared of poly(vinylidene fluoride with trifluoroethylene) copolymer using Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) technique. Unique properties of these films indicate the existence of two-dimensional ferroelectricity. The retention of two polarized states in ferroelectric polymer LB films is studied using nonlinear dielectric spectroscopy. The technique is based on phase sensitive measurements of nonlinear dielectric spectroscopy. The amplitude of the current response at the 2nd harmonic of the applied voltage is proportional to the magnitude of the remnant polarization, while its phase gives the sign. We have found that 10 - 20 mm thick LB films can show fast switching time and long retention of the two polarized states. Nevertheless, LB films show a pronounced asymmetry in switching to the opposite states. Possible mechanisms of such behavior are discussed.

Switching Characteristics of Ferroelectric Transistor Inverters

Science.gov (United States)

Laws, Crystal; Mitchell, Coey; MacLeod, Todd C.; Ho, Fat D.

2010-01-01

This paper presents the switching characteristics of an inverter circuit using a ferroelectric field effect transistor, FeFET. The propagation delay time characteristics, phl and plh are presented along with the output voltage rise and fall times, rise and fall. The propagation delay is the time-delay between the V50% transitions of the input and output voltages. The rise and fall times are the times required for the output voltages to transition between the voltage levels V10% and V90%. Comparisons are made between the MOSFET inverter and the ferroelectric transistor inverter.

High-accuracy determination for optical indicatrix rotation in ferroelectric DTGS

OpenAIRE

O.S.Kushnir; O.A.Bevz; O.G.Vlokh

2000-01-01

Optical indicatrix rotation in deuterated ferroelectric triglycine sulphate is studied with the high-accuracy null-polarimetric technique. The behaviour of the effect in ferroelectric phase is referred to quadratic spontaneous electrooptics.

The operational mechanism of ferroelectric-driven organic resistive switches

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kemerink, M.; Asadi, K.; Blom, P.W.M.; Leeuw, D.M. de

2012-01-01

The availability of a reliable memory element is crucial for the fabrication of 'plastic' logic circuits. We use numerical simulations to show that the switching mechanism of ferroelectric-driven organic resistive switches is the stray field of the polarized ferroelectric phase. The stray field

The operational mechanism of ferroelectric-driven organic resistive switches

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kemerink, M.; Asadi, K. (Kamal); Blom, P.W.M.; Leeuw, de D.M.

2012-01-01

The availability of a reliable memory element is crucial for the fabrication of ‘plastic’ logic circuits. We use numerical simulations to show that the switching mechanism of ferroelectric-driven organic resistive switches is the stray field of the polarized ferroelectric phase. The stray field

The operational mechanism of ferroelectric-driven organic resistive switches

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kemerink, Martijn; Asadi, Kamal; Blom, Paul W. M.; de Leeuw, Dago M.

The availability of a reliable memory element is crucial for the fabrication of 'plastic' logic circuits. We use numerical simulations to show that the switching mechanism of ferroelectric-driven organic resistive switches is the stray field of the polarized ferroelectric phase. The stray field

Enhanced magnetic and ferroelectric properties in scandium doped nano Bi2Fe4O9

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dutta, Dimple P.; Sudakar, C.; Mocherla, Pavana S.V.; Mandal, Balaji P.; Jayakumar, Onnatu D.; Tyagi, Avesh K.

2012-01-01

In this study we report the synthesis of undoped and Sc 3+ doped Bi 2 Fe 4 O 9 nanoparticles using sonochemical technique. X-ray diffraction reveals that all samples are single phase with no impurities detected. EDS analysis was done to confirm the extent of Sc 3+ doping in the samples. The size and morphology of the nanoparticles have been analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The Bi 2 Fe 4 O 9 nanoparticles show a weak ferromagnetic behavior at room temperature, which is quite different from the linear M–H relationship reported for bulk Bi 2 Fe 4 O 9 . A magnetization of 0.144 μB/f.u. is obtained at 300 K, which is mainly attributed to the uncompensated moments at the disordered particle surface resulting from the reduced coordination of the surface spins, arising due to lattice strain or oxygen deficiency. Addition of Sc 3+ dopant in varying concentrations in these Bi 2 Fe 4 O 9 nanoparticles, improves their magnetic as well as ferroelectric properties. The leakage current is considerably reduced and electric polarization increases significantly in case of Bi 2 Fe 4(1−x) Sc x O 9 (x = 0.1) nanoparticles. Thus it can be inferred that Sc 3+ doped Bi 2 Fe 4 O 9 nanoparticles shows promise as good multiferroic materials. -- Graphical abstract: Undoped and Sc 3+ doped Bi 2 Fe 4 O 9 nanoparticles have been synthesized using sonochemical technique. The bi-functionalities of Sc 3+ doped Bi 2 Fe 4 O 9 nanoparticles have been demonstrated. The Bi 2 Fe 4(1−x) Sc x O 9 (x = 0.1) nanoparticles showed enhanced magnetic and ferroelectric properties with considerably less lossy characteristics compared to the bulk Bi 2 Fe 4 O 9 . Highlights: ► Phase pure Bi 2 Fe 4 O 9 nanostructures synthesized using a facile sonochemical technique. ► Nanoparticles show a weak ferromagnetic order at room temperature. ► Sc 3+ doping in Bi 2 Fe 4 O 9 nanoparticles alters their magnetic and ferroelectric properties. ► A

Ferroelectric properties of tungsten bronze morphotropic phase boundary systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oliver, J.R.; Neurgaonkar, R.R.; Cross, L.E.; Pennsylvania State Univ., University Park, PA

1989-01-01

Tungsten bronze ferroelectrics which have a morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) can have a number or enhanced dielectric, piezoelectric, and electrooptic properties compared to more conventional ferroelectric materials. The structural and ferroelectric properties of several MPB bronze systems are presented, including data from sintered and hot-pressed ceramics, epitaxial thin films, and bulk single crystals. Included among these are three systems which had not been previously identified as morphotropic. The potential advantages and limitations of these MPB systems are discussed, along with considerations of the appropriate growth methods for their possible utilization in optical, piezoelectric, or pyroelectric device applications

Giant enhancement in the ferroelectric field effect using a polarization gradient

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gu, Zongquan [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104 (United States); Islam, Mohammad A. [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104 (United States); Department of Physics, State University of New York at Oswego, Oswego, New York 13126 (United States); Spanier, Jonathan E., E-mail: spanier@drexel.edu [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104 (United States); Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104 (United States); Department of Physics, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104 (United States)

2015-10-19

Coupling of switchable ferroelectric polarization with the carrier transport in an adjacent semiconductor enables a robust, non-volatile manipulation of the conductance in a host of low-dimensional systems, including the two-dimensional electron liquid that forms at the LaAlO{sub 3} (LAO)-SrTiO{sub 3} (STO) interface. However, strength of the gate-channel coupling is relatively weak, limited in part by the electrostatic potential difference across a ferroelectric gate. Here, through application of phenomenological Landau-Ginzburg-Devonshire theory and self-consistent Poisson-Schrödinger model calculations, we show how compositional grading of PbZr{sub 1−x}Ti{sub x}O{sub 3} ferroelectric gates enables a more than twenty-five-fold increase in the LAO/STO channel conductance on/off ratios. Incorporation of polarization gradients in ferroelectric gates can enable breakthrough performance of ferroelectric non-volatile memories.

Ferroelectric field-effect transistors based on solution-processed electrochemically exfoliated graphene

Science.gov (United States)

Heidler, Jonas; Yang, Sheng; Feng, Xinliang; Müllen, Klaus; Asadi, Kamal

2018-06-01

Memories based on graphene that could be mass produced using low-cost methods have not yet received much attention. Here we demonstrate graphene ferroelectric (dual-gate) field effect transistors. The graphene has been obtained using electrochemical exfoliation of graphite. Field-effect transistors are realized using a monolayer of graphene flakes deposited by the Langmuir-Blodgett protocol. Ferroelectric field effect transistor memories are realized using a random ferroelectric copolymer poly(vinylidenefluoride-co-trifluoroethylene) in a top gated geometry. The memory transistors reveal ambipolar behaviour with both electron and hole accumulation channels. We show that the non-ferroelectric bottom gate can be advantageously used to tune the on/off ratio.

High-Tc ferroelectrics and superconductors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muller, K.A.

1990-01-01

The meaning of the title refers to transition temperatures T c in ferroelectrics (FE) and superconductors (S). The highest T c 's in either field are observed in oxides: 1770 K in the ferroelectric La 2 TiO 7 and 125 K in the superconductor Tl 2 Ca 2 Cu 3 O 10 . Therefore, the question can be asked whether the observed high T c 's in oxide FE and S are a pure coincidence or whether there may be an underlying reason for it. This question is addressed first by recalling recent advances concerning anharmonic FE-properties and then by reviewing S-findings in the new compounds related to these properties

A thermally robust and thickness independent ferroelectric phase in laminated hafnium zirconium oxide

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. Riedel

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Ferroelectric properties in hafnium oxide based thin films have recovered the scaling potential for ferroelectric memories due to their ultra-thin-film- and CMOS-compatibility. However, the variety of physical phenomena connected to ferroelectricity allows a wider range of applications for these materials than ferroelectric memory. Especially mixed HfxZr1-xO2 thin films exhibit a broad compositional range of ferroelectric phase stability and provide the possibility to tailor material properties for multiple applications. Here it is shown that the limited thermal stability and thick-film capability of HfxZr1-xO2 can be overcome by a laminated approach using alumina interlayers.

Ferroelectricity and Piezoelectricity in Free-Standing Polycrystalline Films of Plastic Crystals.

Science.gov (United States)

Harada, Jun; Yoneyama, Naho; Yokokura, Seiya; Takahashi, Yukihiro; Miura, Atsushi; Kitamura, Noboru; Inabe, Tamotsu

2018-01-10

Plastic crystals represent a unique compound class that is often encountered in molecules with globular structures. The highly symmetric cubic crystal structure of plastic crystals endows these materials with multiaxial ferroelectricity that allows a three-dimensional realignment of the polarization axes of the crystals, which cannot be achieved using conventional molecular ferroelectric crystals with low crystal symmetry. In this work, we focused our attention on malleability as another characteristic feature of plastic crystals. We have synthesized the new plastic/ferroelectric ionic crystals tetramethylammonium tetrachloroferrate(III) and tetramethylammonium bromotrichloroferrate(III), and discovered that free-standing translucent films can be easily prepared by pressing powdered samples of these compounds. The thus obtained polycrystalline films exhibit ferroelectric polarization switching and a relatively large piezoelectric response at room temperature. The ready availability of functional films demonstrates the practical utility of such plastic/ferroelectric crystals, and considering the vast variety of possible constituent cations and anions, a wide range of applications should be expected for these unique and attractive functional materials.

Theoretical Methods of Domain Structures in Ultrathin Ferroelectric Films: A Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jianyi Liu

2014-09-01

Full Text Available This review covers methods and recent developments of the theoretical study of domain structures in ultrathin ferroelectric films. The review begins with an introduction to some basic concepts and theories (e.g., polarization and its modern theory, ferroelectric phase transition, domain formation, and finite size effects, etc. that are relevant to the study of domain structures in ultrathin ferroelectric films. Basic techniques and recent progress of a variety of important approaches for domain structure simulation, including first-principles calculation, molecular dynamics, Monte Carlo simulation, effective Hamiltonian approach and phase field modeling, as well as multiscale simulation are then elaborated. For each approach, its important features and relative merits over other approaches for modeling domain structures in ultrathin ferroelectric films are discussed. Finally, we review recent theoretical studies on some important issues of domain structures in ultrathin ferroelectric films, with an emphasis on the effects of interfacial electrostatics, boundary conditions and external loads.

The lineshape of inelastic neutron scattering in the relaxor ferroelectrics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ivanov, M.A.; Kozlovski, M.; Piesiewicz, T.; Stephanovich, V.A.; Weron, A.; Wymyslowski, A.

2005-01-01

The possibilities of theoretical and experimental investigations of relaxor ferroelectrics by inelastic neutron scattering method are considered. The simple model to description of the peculiarities of inelastic neutron scattering lineshapes in ferroelectric relaxors is suggested. The essence of this model is to consider the interaction of the phonon subsystem of relaxor ferroelectrics with the ensemble of defects and impurities. The modification of the Latin Hypercube Sampling (LHS) method is presented. The optimization of planning of experiment by the modified LHS method is considered [ru

Reversible spin texture in ferroelectric Hf O2

Science.gov (United States)

Tao, L. L.; Paudel, Tula R.; Kovalev, Alexey A.; Tsymbal, Evgeny Y.

2017-06-01

Spin-orbit coupling effects occurring in noncentrosymmetric materials are known to be responsible for nontrivial spin configurations and a number of emergent physical phenomena. Ferroelectric materials may be especially interesting in this regard due to reversible spontaneous polarization making possible a nonvolatile electrical control of the spin degrees of freedom. Here, we explore a technologically relevant oxide material, Hf O2 , which has been shown to exhibit robust ferroelectricity in a noncentrosymmetric orthorhombic phase. Using theoretical modelling based on density-functional theory, we investigate the spin-dependent electronic structure of the ferroelectric Hf O2 and demonstrate the appearance of chiral spin textures driven by spin-orbit coupling. We analyze these spin configurations in terms of the Rashba and Dresselhaus effects within the k .p Hamiltonian model and find that the Rashba-type spin texture dominates around the valence-band maximum, while the Dresselhaus-type spin texture prevails around the conduction band minimum. The latter is characterized by a very large Dresselhaus constant λD= 0.578 eV Å, which allows using this material as a tunnel barrier to produce tunneling anomalous and spin Hall effects that are reversible by ferroelectric polarization.

Ferroelectric Cathodes in Transverse Magnetic Fields

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alexander Dunaevsky; Yevgeny Raitses; Nathaniel J. Fisch

2002-01-01

Experimental investigations of a planar ferroelectric cathode in a transverse magnetic field up to 3 kGs are presented. It is shown that the transverse magnetic field affects differently the operation of ferroelectric plasma cathodes in ''bright'' and ''dark'' modes in vacuum. In the ''bright'' mode, when the surface plasma is formed, the application of the transverse magnetic field leads to an increase of the surface plasma density. In the ''dark'' mode, the magnetic field inhibits the development of electron avalanches along the surface, as it does similarly in other kinds of surface discharges in the pre-breakdown mode

Physical aspects of ferroelectric semiconductors for photovoltaic solar energy conversion

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lopez-Varo, Pilar [Departamento de Electrónica y Tecnología de Computadores, CITIC-UGR, Universidad de Granada, 18071 Granada (Spain); Bertoluzzi, Luca [Institute of Advanced Materials (INAM), Universitat Jaume I, 12006 Castelló (Spain); Bisquert, Juan, E-mail: bisquert@uji.es [Institute of Advanced Materials (INAM), Universitat Jaume I, 12006 Castelló (Spain); Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah (Saudi Arabia); Alexe, Marin [Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL (United Kingdom); Coll, Mariona [Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Campus UAB, 08193, Bellaterra, Catalonia (Spain); Huang, Jinsong [Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering and Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588-0656 (United States); Jimenez-Tejada, Juan Antonio [Departamento de Electrónica y Tecnología de Computadores, CITIC-UGR, Universidad de Granada, 18071 Granada (Spain); Kirchartz, Thomas [IEK5-Photovoltaik, Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich (Germany); Faculty of Engineering and CENIDE, University of Duisburg–Essen, Carl-Benz-Str. 199, 47057 Duisburg (Germany); Nechache, Riad; Rosei, Federico [INRS—Center Énergie, Matériaux et Télécommunications, Boulevard Lionel-Boulet, Varennes, Québec, J3X 1S2 (Canada); Yuan, Yongbo [Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering and Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588-0656 (United States)

2016-10-07

Solar energy conversion using semiconductors to fabricate photovoltaic devices relies on efficient light absorption, charge separation of electron–hole pair carriers or excitons, and fast transport and charge extraction to counter recombination processes. Ferroelectric materials are able to host a permanent electrical polarization which provides control over electrical field distribution in bulk and interfacial regions. In this review, we provide a critical overview of the physical principles and mechanisms of solar energy conversion using ferroelectric semiconductors and contact layers, as well as the main achievements reported so far. In a ferroelectric semiconductor film with ideal contacts, the polarization charge would be totally screened by the metal layers and no charge collection field would exist. However, real materials show a depolarization field, smooth termination of polarization, and interfacial energy barriers that do provide the control of interface and bulk electric field by switchable spontaneous polarization. We explore different phenomena as the polarization-modulated Schottky-like barriers at metal/ferroelectric interfaces, depolarization fields, vacancy migration, and the switchable rectifying behavior of ferroelectric thin films. Using a basic physical model of a solar cell, our analysis provides a general picture of the influence of ferroelectric effects on the actual power conversion efficiency of the solar cell device, and we are able to assess whether these effects or their combinations are beneficial or counterproductive. We describe in detail the bulk photovoltaic effect and the contact layers that modify the built-in field and the charge injection and separation in bulk heterojunction organic cells as well as in photocatalytic and water splitting devices. We also review the dominant families of ferroelectric materials that have been most extensively investigated and have provided the best photovoltaic performance.

Physical aspects of ferroelectric semiconductors for photovoltaic solar energy conversion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lopez-Varo, Pilar; Bertoluzzi, Luca; Bisquert, Juan; Alexe, Marin; Coll, Mariona; Huang, Jinsong; Jimenez-Tejada, Juan Antonio; Kirchartz, Thomas; Nechache, Riad; Rosei, Federico; Yuan, Yongbo

2016-01-01

Solar energy conversion using semiconductors to fabricate photovoltaic devices relies on efficient light absorption, charge separation of electron–hole pair carriers or excitons, and fast transport and charge extraction to counter recombination processes. Ferroelectric materials are able to host a permanent electrical polarization which provides control over electrical field distribution in bulk and interfacial regions. In this review, we provide a critical overview of the physical principles and mechanisms of solar energy conversion using ferroelectric semiconductors and contact layers, as well as the main achievements reported so far. In a ferroelectric semiconductor film with ideal contacts, the polarization charge would be totally screened by the metal layers and no charge collection field would exist. However, real materials show a depolarization field, smooth termination of polarization, and interfacial energy barriers that do provide the control of interface and bulk electric field by switchable spontaneous polarization. We explore different phenomena as the polarization-modulated Schottky-like barriers at metal/ferroelectric interfaces, depolarization fields, vacancy migration, and the switchable rectifying behavior of ferroelectric thin films. Using a basic physical model of a solar cell, our analysis provides a general picture of the influence of ferroelectric effects on the actual power conversion efficiency of the solar cell device, and we are able to assess whether these effects or their combinations are beneficial or counterproductive. We describe in detail the bulk photovoltaic effect and the contact layers that modify the built-in field and the charge injection and separation in bulk heterojunction organic cells as well as in photocatalytic and water splitting devices. We also review the dominant families of ferroelectric materials that have been most extensively investigated and have provided the best photovoltaic performance.

Theoretical model for thin ferroelectric films and the multilayer structures based on them

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Starkov, A. S., E-mail: starkov@iue.tuwien.ac.at; Pakhomov, O. V. [St. Petersburg National Research Univeristy ITMO, Institute of Refrigeration and Biotechnologies (Russian Federation); Starkov, I. A. [Vienna University of Technology, Institute for Microelectronics (Austria)

2013-06-15

A modified Weiss mean-field theory is used to study the dependence of the properties of a thin ferroelectric film on its thickness. The possibility of introducing gradient terms into the thermodynamic potential is analyzed using the calculus of variations. An integral equation is introduced to generalize the well-known Langevin equation to the case of the boundaries of a ferroelectric. An analysis of this equation leads to the existence of a transition layer at the interface between ferroelectrics or a ferroelectric and a dielectric. The permittivity of this layer is shown to depend on the electric field direction even if the ferroelectrics in contact are homogeneous. The results obtained in terms of the Weiss model are compared with the results of the models based on the correlation effect and the presence of a dielectric layer at the boundary of a ferroelectric and with experimental data.

Theoretical model for thin ferroelectric films and the multilayer structures based on them

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Starkov, A. S.; Pakhomov, O. V.; Starkov, I. A.

2013-01-01

A modified Weiss mean-field theory is used to study the dependence of the properties of a thin ferroelectric film on its thickness. The possibility of introducing gradient terms into the thermodynamic potential is analyzed using the calculus of variations. An integral equation is introduced to generalize the well-known Langevin equation to the case of the boundaries of a ferroelectric. An analysis of this equation leads to the existence of a transition layer at the interface between ferroelectrics or a ferroelectric and a dielectric. The permittivity of this layer is shown to depend on the electric field direction even if the ferroelectrics in contact are homogeneous. The results obtained in terms of the Weiss model are compared with the results of the models based on the correlation effect and the presence of a dielectric layer at the boundary of a ferroelectric and with experimental data

Theoretical model for thin ferroelectric films and the multilayer structures based on them

Science.gov (United States)

Starkov, A. S.; Pakhomov, O. V.; Starkov, I. A.

2013-06-01

A modified Weiss mean-field theory is used to study the dependence of the properties of a thin ferroelectric film on its thickness. The possibility of introducing gradient terms into the thermodynamic potential is analyzed using the calculus of variations. An integral equation is introduced to generalize the well-known Langevin equation to the case of the boundaries of a ferroelectric. An analysis of this equation leads to the existence of a transition layer at the interface between ferroelectrics or a ferroelectric and a dielectric. The permittivity of this layer is shown to depend on the electric field direction even if the ferroelectrics in contact are homogeneous. The results obtained in terms of the Weiss model are compared with the results of the models based on the correlation effect and the presence of a dielectric layer at the boundary of a ferroelectric and with experimental data.

Controlling the spin-torque efficiency with ferroelectric barriers

KAUST Repository

Useinov, A.; Chshiev, M.; Manchon, Aurelien

2015-01-01

Nonequilibrium spin-dependent transport in magnetic tunnel junctions comprising a ferroelectric barrier is theoretically investigated. The exact solutions of the free electron Schrödinger equation for electron tunneling in the presence of interfacial screening are obtained by combining Bessel and Airy functions. We demonstrate that the spin transfer torque efficiency, and more generally the bias dependence of tunneling magneto- and electroresistance, can be controlled by switching the ferroelectric polarization of the barrier. In particular, the critical voltage at which the in-plane torque changes sign can be strongly enhanced or reduced depending on the direction of the ferroelectric polarization of the barrier. This effect provides a supplementary way to electrically control the current-driven dynamic states of the magnetization and related magnetic noise in spin transfer devices.

Controlling the spin-torque efficiency with ferroelectric barriers

KAUST Repository

Useinov, A.

2015-02-11

Nonequilibrium spin-dependent transport in magnetic tunnel junctions comprising a ferroelectric barrier is theoretically investigated. The exact solutions of the free electron Schrödinger equation for electron tunneling in the presence of interfacial screening are obtained by combining Bessel and Airy functions. We demonstrate that the spin transfer torque efficiency, and more generally the bias dependence of tunneling magneto- and electroresistance, can be controlled by switching the ferroelectric polarization of the barrier. In particular, the critical voltage at which the in-plane torque changes sign can be strongly enhanced or reduced depending on the direction of the ferroelectric polarization of the barrier. This effect provides a supplementary way to electrically control the current-driven dynamic states of the magnetization and related magnetic noise in spin transfer devices.

Fast Ferroelectric L-band Tuner

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kazakov, S. Yu.; Yakovlev, V. P.; Hirshfield, J. L.; Kanareykin, A. D.; Nenasheva, E. A.

2006-01-01

Description is given of a preliminary conceptual design for a tuner that employs a new ferroelectric ceramic that allows fast changes in coupling between the SRF acceleration structure of a linac and the external RF feeding line. The switching time of this device is in the range of a few microseconds. Utilization of this tuner is predicted to decrease Ohmic losses in the acceleration structure and thereby to reduce the power consumption of the linac. Using parameters of the TESLA-800 collider as an example, it is shown that it may be possible to reduce the ac mains power consumption by 12 MW, or about by 10%. The design of the tuner that is described allows reduced pulsed and average heating of the ferroelectric ceramics

Transparent Ferroelectric Capacitors on Glass

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniele Sette

2017-10-01

Full Text Available We deposited transparent ferroelectric lead zirconate titanate thin films on fused silica and contacted them via Al-doped zinc oxide (AZO transparent electrodes with an interdigitated electrode (IDE design. These layers, together with a TiO2 buffer layer on the fused silica substrate, are highly transparent (>60% in the visible optical range. Fully crystallized Pb(Zr0.52Ti0.48O3 (PZT films are dielectrically functional and exhibit a typical ferroelectric polarization loop with a remanent polarization of 15 μC/cm2. The permittivity value of 650, obtained with IDE AZO electrodes is equivalent to the one measured with Pt electrodes patterned with the same design, which proves the high quality of the developed transparent structures.

Quantum switching of polarization in mesoscopic ferroelectrics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sa de Melo, C.A.

1996-01-01

A single domain of a uniaxial ferroelectric grain may be thought of as a classical permanent memory. At the mesoscopic level this system may experience considerable quantum fluctuations due to tunneling between two possible memory states, thus destroying the classical permanent memory effect. To study these quantum effects the concrete example of a mesoscopic uniaxial ferroelectric grain is discussed, where the orientation of the electric polarization determines two possible memory states. The possibility of quantum switching of the polarization in mesoscopic uniaxial ferroelectric grains is thus proposed. To determine the degree of memory loss, the tunneling rate between the two polarization states is calculated at zero temperature both in the absence and in the presence of an external static electric field. In addition, a discussion of crossover temperature between thermally activated behavior and quantum tunneling behavior is presented. And finally, environmental effects (phonons, defects, and surfaces) are also considered. copyright 1996 The American Physical Society

Investigation of the switching characteristics in ferroelectrics by first-order reversal curve diagrams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stancu, Alexandru; Mitoseriu, Liliana; Stoleriu, Laurentiu; Piazza, Daniele; Galassi, Carmen; Ricinschi, Dan; Okuyama, Masanori

2006-01-01

First-order reversal curves (FORC) diagrams are proposed for describing the switching properties in ferroelectric materials. The method is applied for Pb(Zr,Ti)O 3 (PZT) ferroelectric ceramics and films with different P(E) hysteresis and microstructural characteristics. The separation of the reversible and irreversible contributions to the ferroelectric polarization is explained in terms of microstructural characteristics of the investigated samples. The influence of parameters as field frequency, crystallite orientation, ferroelectric fatigue and porosity degree on the FORC diagrams is discussed

Thick-film processing of Pb5Ge3O11-based ferroelectric glass-ceramics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cornejo, I.A.; Haun, M.J.

1996-01-01

Processing techniques were investigated to produce c-axis orientation, or texture, of ferroelectric Pb 5 Ge 3 O 11 -based glass-ceramic compositions during crystallization of amorphous thick-film printed samples from the Pb 5 Ge 3 O 11 -PbTiO 3 (PG-PT) and Pb 5 Ge 3 O 11 -Pb(Zr 1/2 Ti 1/2 )O 3 (PG-PZT) systems. In these systems the PG crystallized into a ferroelectric phase, producing a multiple ferroelectric phase composite at low temperatures, PG-PT or PG-PZT. In this way the non-ferroelectric component of traditional ferroelectric glass-ceramics was eliminated

A new method to study ferroelectrics using the remanent Henkel plots

Science.gov (United States)

Vopson, Melvin M.

2018-05-01

Analysis of experimental curves constructed from dc demagnetization and isothermal remanent magnetization known as Henkel and delta M plots, have served for over 53 years as an important tool for characterization of interactions in ferromagnets. In this article we address the question whether the same experimental technique could be applied to the study of ferroelectric systems. The successful measurement of the equivalent dc depolarisation and isothermal remanent polarization curves and the construction of the Henkel and delta P plots for ferroelectrics is reported here. Full measurement protocol is provided together with experimental examples for two ferroelectric ceramic samples. This new measurement technique is an invaluable experimental tool that could be used to further advance our understanding of ferroelectric materials and their applications.

Four-state ferroelectric spin-valve

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Quindeau, A.; Fina, I.; Martí, Xavier; Apachitei, G.; Ferrer, P.; Nicklin, C.; Pippel, E.; Hesse, D.; Alexe, M.

2015-01-01

Roč. 5, May (2015), 09749 ISSN 2045-2322 Institutional support: RVO:68378271 Keywords : electronic and spintronic devices * ferroelectrics and multiferroics Subject RIV: BE - Theoretical Physics Impact factor: 5.228, year: 2015

A qualitative test for intrinsic size effect on ferroelectric phase transitions

OpenAIRE

Wang, Jin; Tagantsev, Alexander K.; Setter, Nava

2010-01-01

The size effect in ferroelectrics is treated as a competition between the geometrical symmetry of the ferroelectric sample and its crystalline symmetry. The manifestation of this competition is shown to be polarization rotation, which is driven by temperature and/or size variations, thus providing a qualitative indication of intrinsic finite size effect on ferroelectrics. The concept is demonstrated in a simple case of PbTiO3 nanowires having their axis parallel to [111]C direction, where the...

Space-charge-mediated anomalous ferroelectric switching in P(VDF-TrEE) polymer films

KAUST Repository

Hu, Weijin

2014-11-12

We report on the switching dynamics of P(VDF-TrEE) copolymer devices and the realization of additional substable ferroelectric states via modulation of the coupling between polarizations and space charges. The space-charge-limited current is revealed to be the dominant leakage mechanism in such organic ferroelectric devices, and electrostatic interactions due to space charges lead to the emergence of anomalous ferroelectric loops. The reliable control of ferroelectric switching in P(VDF-TrEE) copolymers opens doors toward engineering advanced organic memories with tailored switching characteristics.

Strain tunable ferroelectric and dielectric properties of BaZrO3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Yajun; Liu, Man; Shimada, Takahiro; Kitamura, Takayuki; Wang, Jie

2014-01-01

The crucial role of epitaxial (in-plane) strain on the structural, electronic, energetic, ferroelectric, and dielectric properties of BaZrO 3 (BZO) is investigated using density-functional theory calculations. We demonstrate that the BZO crystal subjected to a critical compressive (or tensile) strain exhibits non-trivial spontaneous polarization that is higher than that of well-known ferroelectrics BaTiO 3 , while the BZO crystal is essentially paraelectric in the absence of strain. The electronic structure and Born-effective-charge analyses elucidate that the strain-induced paraelectric-to-ferroelectric transition is driven by the orbital hybridization of d-p electrons between zirconium and oxygen. Through the strain-induced paraelectric-to-ferroelectric phase transition, the dielectric response of BZO is significantly enhanced by the in-plane strain. The tensile strain increases the in-plane dielectric constant by a factor of seven with respect to that without the strain, while the compression tends to enhance the out-of-plane dielectric response. Therefore, strain engineering makes BZO an important electromechanical material due to the diversity in ferroelectric and dielectric properties.

Overview of one transistor type of hybrid organic ferroelectric non-volatile memory

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Young; Tea; Chun; Daping; Chu

2015-01-01

Organic ferroelectric memory devices based on field effect transistors that can be configured between two stable states of on and off have been widely researched as the next generation data storage media in recent years.This emerging type of memory devices can lead to a new instrument system as a potential alternative to previous non-volatile memory building blocks in future processing units because of their numerous merits such as cost-effective process,simple structure and freedom in substrate choices.This bi-stable non-volatile memory device of information storage has been investigated using several organic or inorganic semiconductors with organic ferroelectric polymer materials.Recent progresses in this ferroelectric memory field,hybrid system have attracted a lot of attention due to their excellent device performance in comparison with that of all organic systems.In this paper,a general review of this type of ferroelectric non-volatile memory is provided,which include the device structure,organic ferroelectric materials,electrical characteristics and working principles.We also present some snapshots of our previous study on hybrid ferroelectric memories including our recent work based on zinc oxide nanowire channels.

R-curve behaviour of ferroelectric ceramics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Egorov, N.Ya.; Kramarov, S.O.

2004-01-01

The attempt's made to identify and evaluate the regularities of developing the fractures in the ferroelectric ceramics and also-study the effect of the polishing operation on the strength characteristics of the piezoceramics. The R-curve behaviour in the ferroelectric ceramics is studied on the samples of the barium titanate and lead zirconate-titanate by the four-point bending with controlled surface fractures. It is established that increasing curve of resistance to the fracture growth is observed in the piezoceramics under the conditions of the fracture stable growth. The results obtained on the polished samples prove that the mechanical processing introduces the compression surface stresses into the piezoceramic materials [ru

Anti-Ferroelectric Ceramics for High Energy Density Capacitors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aditya Chauhan

2015-11-01

Full Text Available With an ever increasing dependence on electrical energy for powering modern equipment and electronics, research is focused on the development of efficient methods for the generation, storage and distribution of electrical power. In this regard, the development of suitable dielectric based solid-state capacitors will play a key role in revolutionizing modern day electronic and electrical devices. Among the popular dielectric materials, anti-ferroelectrics (AFE display evidence of being a strong contender for future ceramic capacitors. AFE materials possess low dielectric loss, low coercive field, low remnant polarization, high energy density, high material efficiency, and fast discharge rates; all of these characteristics makes AFE materials a lucrative research direction. However, despite the evident advantages, there have only been limited attempts to develop this area. This article attempts to provide a focus to this area by presenting a timely review on the topic, on the relevant scientific advancements that have been made with respect to utilization and development of anti-ferroelectric materials for electric energy storage applications. The article begins with a general introduction discussing the need for high energy density capacitors, the present solutions being used to address this problem, and a brief discussion of various advantages of anti-ferroelectric materials for high energy storage applications. This is followed by a general description of anti-ferroelectricity and important anti-ferroelectric materials. The remainder of the paper is divided into two subsections, the first of which presents various physical routes for enhancing the energy storage density while the latter section describes chemical routes for enhanced storage density. This is followed by conclusions and future prospects and challenges which need to be addressed in this particular field.

Interrelationship between flexoelectricity and strain gradient elasticity in ferroelectric nanofilms: A phase field study

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Limei; Xu, Xiaofei; Zhou, Yichun

2016-12-01

With the development of the integrated circuit technology and decreasing of the device size, ferroelectric films used in nano ferroelectric devices become thinner and thinner. Along with the downscaling of the ferroelectric film, there is an increasing influence of two strain gradient related terms. One is the strain gradient elasticity and the other one is flexoelectricity. To investigate the interrelationship between flexoelectricity and strain gradient elasticity and their combined effect on the domain structure in ferroelectric nanofilms, a phase field model of flexoelectricity and strain gradient elasticity on the ferroelectric domain evolution is developed based on Mindlin's theory of strain-gradient elasticity. Weak form is derived and implemented in finite element formulations for numerically solving the model equations. The simulation results show that upper bounds for flexoelectric coefficients can be enhanced by increasing strain gradient elasticity coefficients. While a large flexoelectricity that exceeds the upper bound can induce a transition from a ferroelectric state to a modulated/incommensurate state, a large enough strain gradient elasticity may lead to a conversion from an incommensurate state to a ferroelectric state. Strain gradient elasticity and the flexoelectricity have entirely opposite effects on polarization. The observed interrelationship between the strain gradient elasticity and flexoelectricity is rationalized by an analytical solution of the proposed theoretical model. The model proposed in this paper could help us understand the mechanism of phenomena observed in ferroelectric nanofilms under complex electromechanical loads and provide some guides on the practical application of ferroelectric nanofilms.

Giant electrocaloric effect in a cracked ferroelectrics

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Cheng; Yang, Hai-Bing; Gao, Cun-Fa

2018-04-01

The electrocaloric effect (ECE) is the temperature change in a material induced by electrical field variation under adiabatic condition. Considering an external electric load applied on a cracked ferroelectric solid, a non-uniform electric field would be induced at the crack tip, and thus, incompatible strain field and local stress concentration would be generated around it. Furthermore, the enormous strain energy and the electrostatic energy would affect the polarization switching of the ferroelectric solid, important for the electrocaloric response. In this paper, the large negative and positive ECEs in a ferroelectric sheet with a conducting crack are investigated by the phase field method with the consideration of time-dependent Ginzburg-Landau equation. The numerical calculations indicated that the polarization field generates a sharp rise during the domain transition from polydomain to monodomain under a certain electric load. Large negative ECEs, about -10.21 K and -7.55 K, are obtained at 135 °C and 85 °C, respectively. The domain transition temperature is much lower than the Curie temperature, which enlarges the existence scope of the large ECE in ferroelectrics. The results also imply that the domain transition from a multi-domain state to a single domain takes place with the minimization of total free energy, which involves the courses of the electric field, stress field, temperature, and polarization interaction. Therefore, the non-uniform distributions of the stress-electric fields induced by the crack play an important role in ECE.

Composite silicon nanostructure arrays fabricated on optical fibre by chemical etching of multicrystal silicon film

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zuo, Zewen; Zhu, Kai; Ning, Lixin; Cui, Guanglei; Qu, Jun; Huang, Wanxia; Shi, Yi; Liu, Hong

2015-01-01

Integrating nanostructures onto optical fibers presents a promising strategy for developing new-fashioned devices and extending the scope of nanodevices’ applications. Here we report the first fabrication of a composite silicon nanostructure on an optical fiber. Through direct chemical etching using an H 2 O 2 /HF solution, multicrystal silicon films with columnar microstructures are etched into a vertically aligned, inverted-cone-like nanorod array embedded in a nanocone array. A faster dissolution rate of the silicon at the void-rich boundary regions between the columns is found to be responsible for the separation of the columns, and thus the formation of the nanostructure array. The morphology of the nanorods primarily depends on the microstructure of the columns in the film. Through controlling the microstructure of the as-grown film and the etching parameters, the structural control of the nanostructure is promising. This fabrication method can be extended to a larger length scale, and it even allows roll-to-roll processing. (paper)

Composite silicon nanostructure arrays fabricated on optical fibre by chemical etching of multicrystal silicon film.

Science.gov (United States)

Zuo, Zewen; Zhu, Kai; Ning, Lixin; Cui, Guanglei; Qu, Jun; Huang, Wanxia; Shi, Yi; Liu, Hong

2015-04-17

Integrating nanostructures onto optical fibers presents a promising strategy for developing new-fashioned devices and extending the scope of nanodevices' applications. Here we report the first fabrication of a composite silicon nanostructure on an optical fiber. Through direct chemical etching using an H2O2/HF solution, multicrystal silicon films with columnar microstructures are etched into a vertically aligned, inverted-cone-like nanorod array embedded in a nanocone array. A faster dissolution rate of the silicon at the void-rich boundary regions between the columns is found to be responsible for the separation of the columns, and thus the formation of the nanostructure array. The morphology of the nanorods primarily depends on the microstructure of the columns in the film. Through controlling the microstructure of the as-grown film and the etching parameters, the structural control of the nanostructure is promising. This fabrication method can be extended to a larger length scale, and it even allows roll-to-roll processing.

Embedded vertically aligned cadmium telluride nanorod arrays grown by one-step electrodeposition for enhanced energy conversion efficiency in three-dimensional nanostructured solar cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jun; Liu, Shurong; Mu, Yannan; Liu, Li; A, Runa; Yang, Jiandong; Zhu, Guijie; Meng, Xianwei; Fu, Wuyou; Yang, Haibin

2017-11-01

Vertically aligned CdTe nanorods (NRs) arrays are successfully grown by a simple one-step and template-free electrodeposition method, and then embedded in the CdS window layer to form a novel three-dimensional (3D) heterostructure on flexible substrates. The parameters of electrodeposition such as deposition potential and pH of the solution are varied to analyze their important role in the formation of high quality CdTe NRs arrays. The photovoltaic conversion efficiency of the solar cell based on the 3D heterojunction structure is studied in detail. In comparison with the standard planar heterojunction solar cell, the 3D heterojunction solar cell exhibits better photovoltaic performance, which can be attributed to its enhanced optical absorption ability, increased heterojunction area and improved charge carrier transport. The better photoelectric property of the 3D heterojunction solar cell suggests great application potential in thin film solar cells, and the simple electrodeposition process represents a promising technique for large-scale fabrication of other nanostructured solar energy conversion devices. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Fast Ferroelectric L-Band Tuner for Superconducting Cavities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jay L. Hirshfield

2011-03-01

Analysis and modeling is presented for a fast microwave tuner to operate at 700 MHz which incorporates ferroelectric elements whose dielectric permittivity can be rapidly altered by application of an external voltage. This tuner could be used to correct unavoidable fluctuations in the resonant frequency of superconducting cavities in accelerator structures, thereby greatly reducing the RF power needed to drive the cavities. A planar test version of the tuner has been tested at low levels of RF power, but at 1300 MHz to minimize the physical size of the test structure. This test version comprises one-third of the final version. The tests show performance in good agreement with simulations, but with losses in the ferroelectric elements that are too large for practical use, and with issues in bonding of ferroelectric elements to the metal walls of the tuner structure.

Fast Ferroelectric L-Band Tuner for Superconducting Cavities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hirshfield, Jay L.

2011-01-01

Analysis and modeling is presented for a fast microwave tuner to operate at 700 MHz which incorporates ferroelectric elements whose dielectric permittivity can be rapidly altered by application of an external voltage. This tuner could be used to correct unavoidable fluctuations in the resonant frequency of superconducting cavities in accelerator structures, thereby greatly reducing the RF power needed to drive the cavities. A planar test version of the tuner has been tested at low levels of RF power, but at 1300 MHz to minimize the physical size of the test structure. This test version comprises one-third of the final version. The tests show performance in good agreement with simulations, but with losses in the ferroelectric elements that are too large for practical use, and with issues in bonding of ferroelectric elements to the metal walls of the tuner structure.

Heterogeneous Ferroelectric Solid Solutions Phases and Domain States

CERN Document Server

Topolov, Vitaly

2012-01-01

The book deals with perovskite-type ferroelectric solid solutions for modern materials science and applications, solving problems of complicated heterophase/domain structures near the morphotropic phase boundary and applications to various systems with morphotropic phases. In this book domain state–interface diagrams are presented for the interpretation of heterophase states in perovskite-type ferroelectric solid solutions. It allows to describe the stress relief in the presence of polydomain phases, the behavior of unit-cell parameters of coexisting phases and the effect of external electric fields. The novelty of the book consists in (i) the first systematization of data about heterophase states and their evolution in ferroelectric solid solutions (ii) the general interpretation of heterophase and domain structures at changing temperature, composition or electric field (iii) the complete analysis of interconnection domain structures, unit-cell parameters changes, heterophase structures and stress relief.

Effect of extrapolation length on the phase transformation of epitaxial ferroelectric thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hu, Z.S.; Tang, M.H.; Wang, J.B.; Zheng, X.J.; Zhou, Y.C.

2008-01-01

Effects of extrapolation length on the phase transformation of epitaxial ferroelectric thin films on dissimilar cubic substrates have been studied on the basis of the mean-field Landau-Ginzburg-Devonshire (LGD) thermodynamic theory by taking an uneven distribution of the interior stress with thickness into account. It was found that the polarization of epitaxial ferroelectric thin films is strongly dependent on the extrapolation length of films. The physical origin of the extrapolation length during the phase transformation from paraelectric to ferroelectric was revealed in the case of ferroelectric thin films

Dependence of the carrier mobility and trapped charge limited conduction on silver nanoparticles embedment in doped polypyrrole nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Biswas, Swarup; Dutta, Bula; Bhattacharya, Subhratanu

2013-10-01

The present article demonstrates an intensive study upon the temperature dependent current density (J)-voltage (V) characteristics of moderately doped polypyrrole nanostructure and its silver nanoparticles incorporated nanocomposites. Analysis of the measured J-V characteristics of different synthesized nano-structured samples within a wide temperature range revealed that the electrical conduction behavior followed a trapped charge-limited conduction and a transition of charge transport mechanism from deep exponential trap limited conduction to shallow traps limited conduction had been occurred due to the incorporation of silver nanoparticles within the polypyrrole matrix. A direct evaluation of carrier mobility as a function of electric field and temperature from the measured J-V characteristics illustrates that the incorporation of silver nanoparticles within the polypyrrole matrix enhances the carrier mobility at a large extent by reducing the concentration of traps within the polypyrrole matrix. The calculated mobility is consistent with the Poole-Frenkel form for the electrical field up to a certain temperature range. The nonlinear low temperature dependency of mobility of all the nanostructured samples was explained by Mott variable range hopping conduction mechanisms. Quantitative information regarding the charge transport parameters obtained from the above study would help to extend optimization strategies for the fabrication of new organic semiconducting nano-structured devices.

Electrical transport through Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 p-n and p-p heterostructures modulated by bound charges at a ferroelectric surface: Ferroelectric p-n diode

Science.gov (United States)

Watanabe, Yukio

1999-05-01

Current through (Pb,La)(Zr,Ti)O3 ferroelectrics on perovskite semiconductors is found to exhibit diode characteristics of which polarity is universally determined by the carrier conduction-type semiconductors. A persisting highly reproducible resistance modulation by a dc voltage, which has a short retention, is observed and is ascribed to a band bending of the ferroelectric by the formation of charged traps. This interpretation is consistent with a large relaxation current observed at a low voltage. On the other hand, a reproducible resistance modulation by a pulse voltage, which has a long retention, is observed in metal/(Pb,La)(Zr,Ti)O3/SrTiO3:Nb but not in metal/(Pb,La)(Zr,Ti)O3/(La,Sr)2CuO4 and is attributed to a possible band bending due to the spontaneous polarization (P) switching. The observed current voltage (IV) characteristics, the polarity dependence, the relaxation, and the modulation are explicable, if we assume a p-n or a p-p junction at the ferroelectric semiconductor interface (p: hole conduction type, n: electron conduction type). The analysis suggests that an intrinsically inhomogeneous P (∇P) near the ferroelectric/metal interface is likely very weak or existing in a very thin layer, when a reaction of the metal with the ferroelectric is eliminated. Additionally, the various aspects of transport through ferroelectrics are explained as a transport in the carrier depleted region.

Composition driven structural instability in perovskite ferroelectrics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chao Xu

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Ferroelectric solid solutions usually exhibit enhanced functional properties at the morphotropic phase boundary separating two ferroelectric phases with different orientations of polarization. The underlying mechanism is generally associated with polarization rotational instability and the flattened free energy profile. In this work we show that the polarization extensional instability can also be induced at the morphotropic phase boundary beyond the reported polar-nonpolar phase boundary. The piezoelectricity enhanced by this mechanism exhibits excellent thermal stability, which helps to develop high performance piezoelectric materials with good temperature stability.

Quantum fluctuations in insulating ferroelectrics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Riseborough, Peter S.

2010-01-01

Graphical abstract: It has been proposed that in a ferroelectric insulator, an applied magnetic field may couple the transverse phonon modes and produce left and right circularly polarized phonon modes which are no longer degenerate. We quantize the theory and examine the effects of quantal fluctuations. In particular, we show that the zero point fluctuations result in a large diamagnetic contribution to the magnetic susceptibility. - Abstract: It has been proposed that in a ferroelectric insulator, an applied magnetic field may couple the transverse phonon modes and produce left and right circularly polarized phonon modes which are no longer degenerate. We quantize the theory and examine the effects of quantal fluctuations. In particular, we show that the zero-point fluctuations result in a large diamagnetic contribution to the magnetic susceptibility.

Tailoring the Optical Properties of Silicon with Ion Beam Created Nanostructures for Advanced Photonics Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Akhter, Perveen

light trapping in poly-Si thin films using ion implantation induced surface texturing. In addition to surface texturing produced by H and Ar ion implantations, metal nanostructures are also added to the surface to further suppress light reflection at the plasmonic resonance of metal nanostructures. Remarkable suppression has been achieved resulting in reflection from the air/Si interface to below ˜5%. In the second part, optical properties of embedded metal nanostructures in silicon matrix gettered into the ion implantation created nanocavities are studied. Embedded nanostructures can have a huge impact in future photonics applications by replacing the existing electronic and photonic components such as interconnects, waveguides, modulators and amplifiers with their plasmonic counterparts. This new method of encapsulating metal nanostructures in silicon is cost-effective and compatible with silicon fabrication technology. Spectroscopic ellipsometry is used to study the dielectric properties of silicon with embedded silver nanostructures. High absorption regions around 900 nm, corresponding to plasmonic absorption of Ag nanoparticles in Si, have been observed and compared to theoretical calculations and simulation results. The possibility of modifying the dielectric function of Si with metal nanostructures can lay the foundation for functional base structures for advanced applications in silicon photonics, photovoltaics and plasmonics.

Broadband THz pulse emission and transmission properties of nanostructured Pt thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hu, Mingzhe [Department of Physics and Electronics, Liupanshui Normal University, Liupanshui, Guizhou 553004 (China); College of Electronics and Information, Guizhou University, Huaxi 550025, Guiyang, Guizhou (China); Mu, Kaijun; Zhang, Cunlin [Department of Physics, Capital Normal University, Yuquan Road 100082, Beijing (China); Gu, Haoshuang, E-mail: guhs@hubu.edu.cn [Department of Electronic Sci& Tech, Hubei University, Xueyuan Road 430062, Wuhan, Hubei (China); Ding, Zhao [College of Electronics and Information, Guizhou University, Huaxi 550025, Guiyang, Guizhou (China)

2015-10-01

The THz transmission and emitting properties of a composite metallic nanostructure, composed of Ag nanowires electrodeposited in an anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) template and a Pt thin film, were investigated by using a femtosecond pulse laser irradiation. The microstructure of the above sub-wavelength nanostructure was investigated by XRD, SEM, AFM and TEM. The results indicated that the thickness of the Pt thin film was about 200 nm and the Ag nanowire array had a sparse and random distribution inside the AAO template, with a length distribution in the range of 10–25 μm. The THz radiation properties of above sub-wavelength nanostructure indicated that the generated THz fluence from the Pt film was a magnitude of μW scale with a broadband frequency range and its subsequent transmission could be significantly improved by the better impedance matching property of the Ag nanowire embedded AAO film compared with that of the empty AAO film.

Dynamic Control of Tunneling Conductance in Ferroelectric Tunnel Junctions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zou Ya-Yi; Zhou Yan; Chew Khian-Hooi

2013-01-01

We investigate the dynamic characteristics of electric polarization P(t) in a ferroelectric junction under ac applied voltage and stress, and calculate the frequency response and the cut-off frequency f 0 , which provides a reference for the upper limit of the working frequency. Our study might be significant for sensor and memory applications of nanodevices based on ferroelectric junctions

"Negative capacitance" in resistor-ferroelectric and ferroelectric-dielectric networks: Apparent or intrinsic?

Science.gov (United States)

Saha, Atanu K.; Datta, Suman; Gupta, Sumeet K.

2018-03-01

In this paper, we describe and analytically substantiate an alternate explanation for the negative capacitance (NC) effect in ferroelectrics (FE). We claim that the NC effect previously demonstrated in resistance-ferroelectric (R-FE) networks does not necessarily validate the existence of "S" shaped relation between polarization and voltage (according to Landau theory). In fact, the NC effect can be explained without invoking the "S"-shaped behavior of FE. We employ an analytical model for FE (Miller model) in which the steady state polarization strictly increases with the voltage across the FE and show that despite the inherent positive FE capacitance, reduction in FE voltage with the increase in its charge is possible in a R-FE network as well as in a ferroelectric-dielectric (FE-DE) stack. This can be attributed to a large increase in FE capacitance near the coercive voltage coupled with the polarization lag with respect to the electric field. Under certain conditions, these two factors yield transient NC effect. We analytically derive conditions for NC effect in R-FE and FE-DE networks. We couple our analysis with extensive simulations to explain the evolution of NC effect. We also compare the trends predicted by the aforementioned Miller model with Landau-Khalatnikov (L-K) model (static negative capacitance due to "S"-shape behaviour) and highlight the differences between the two approaches. First, with an increase in external resistance in the R-FE network, NC effect shows a non-monotonic behavior according to Miller model but increases according to L-K model. Second, with the increase in ramp-rate of applied voltage in the FE-DE stack, NC effect increases according to Miller model but decreases according to L-K model. These results unveil a possible way to experimentally validate the actual reason of NC effect in FE.

Differential geometric aspects of the theory of ferroelectricity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khosiainov, V.T.

1988-11-01

In connection with the problem of the ferroelectricity a differential formalism is developed as a tool to describe the fine electronic properties in solids. This includes the gauge invariant definition of the differentiation in k-space (position operator), the notion of holonomy group and characteristic gauge field in k-space of electron states. A variational principle and possible solutions of resulting field equations are discussed. A criterion for the appearance of the ferroelectricity is proposed. (author). 5 refs

Vacuum-evaporated ferroelectric films and heterostructures of vinylidene fluoride/trifluoroethylene copolymer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Draginda, Yu. A., E-mail: lbf@ns.crys.ras.ru; Yudin, S G; Lazarev, V V; Yablonskii, S V; Palto, S P [Russian Academy of Sciences, Shubnikov Institute of Crystallography (Russian Federation)

2012-05-15

The potential of the vacuum method for preparing ferroelectric films and photonic heterostructures from organic materials is studied. Vacuum-evaporated films of fluoropolymers and heterostructures on their basis are obtained and their ferroelectric and spectral properties are studied. In particular, homogeneous films of the well-known piezoelectric polymer polyvinylidene fluoride and ferroelectric material vinylidene fluoride/trifluoroethylene copolymer (P(VDF/TFE)) are produced. Experimental studies of vacuum-evaporated P(VDF/TFE) films confirmed their ferroelectric properties. The heterostructures composed of alternating layers of P(VDF/TFE) copolymer molecules and azodye molecules are fabricated by vacuum evaporation. Owing to the controlled layer thickness and a significant difference in the refractive indices of the P(VDF/TFE) copolymer and azodyes, these heterostructures exhibit properties of photonic crystals. This finding is confirmed by the occurrence of a photonic band in the absorption spectra of the heterostructures.

CuInP₂S₆ Room Temperature Layered Ferroelectric.

Science.gov (United States)

Belianinov, A; He, Q; Dziaugys, A; Maksymovych, P; Eliseev, E; Borisevich, A; Morozovska, A; Banys, J; Vysochanskii, Y; Kalinin, S V

2015-06-10

We explore ferroelectric properties of cleaved 2-D flakes of copper indium thiophosphate, CuInP2S6 (CITP), and probe size effects along with limits of ferroelectric phase stability, by ambient and ultra high vacuum scanning probe microscopy. CITP belongs to the only material family known to display ferroelectric polarization in a van der Waals, layered crystal at room temperature and above. Our measurements directly reveal stable, ferroelectric polarization as evidenced by domain structures, switchable polarization, and hysteresis loops. We found that at room temperature the domain structure of flakes thicker than 100 nm is similar to the cleaved bulk surfaces, whereas below 50 nm polarization disappears. We ascribe this behavior to a well-known instability of polarization due to depolarization field. Furthermore, polarization switching at high bias is also associated with ionic mobility, as evidenced both by macroscopic measurements and by formation of surface damage under the tip at a bias of 4 V-likely due to copper reduction. Mobile Cu ions may therefore also contribute to internal screening mechanisms. The existence of stable polarization in a van-der-Waals crystal naturally points toward new strategies for ultimate scaling of polar materials, quasi-2D, and single-layer materials with advanced and nonlinear dielectric properties that are presently not found in any members of the growing "graphene family".

Effects of Bi doping on dielectric and ferroelectric properties

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

[Pb0.95(La1−Bi)0.05][Zr0.53Ti0.47]O3 (PLBZT) ferroelectric thin films have been synthesized on indium tin oxide (ITO)-coated glass by sol–gel processing. PLBZT thin films were annealed at a relatively low temperature of 550 °C in oxygen ambient. Effects of Bi doping on structure, dielectric and ferroelectric properties of ...

Surface Acoustic Waves in ferroelectrics

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Tarasenko A., Nataliya; Jastrabík, Lubomír; Tarasenko, Alexander

2004-01-01

Roč. 298, - (2004), s. 325-333 ISSN 0015-0193 R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IBS1010203 Keywords : Rayleigh waves * ferroelectric films * phase transition Subject RIV: BM - Solid Matter Physics ; Magnetism Impact factor: 0.517, year: 2004

Ferroelectric and ferroelastic domain structures in piezoelectric ceramics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bursill, L.A.; Julin Peng.

1990-01-01

A discussion of the results of conventional and high-resolution high-voltage electron microscopic studies of two ferroelectrics, barium sodium niobate and lead zirconium titanate is presented. It is shown that a rich variety of information such as ferroelectric and/or ferroelastic domains discommensurations versus antiphase boundaries, extended versus localized chemical defects and multiphase versus grain boundaries, become accessible in both single crystal and polycrystalline piezoelectrics, when a combination of high-resolution and conventional electron optical techniques is used. 15 refs., 8 figs

Manipulating the ferroelectric polarization state of BaTiO{sub 3} thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Datta, S.; Rioult, M.; Stanescu, D.; Magnan, H.; Barbier, A., E-mail: antoine.barbier@cea.fr

2016-05-31

Controlling the ferroelectric polarization at macroscopic or microscopic levels is crucial in the framework of the development of ferroelectric materials used in yet challenging photo-electrochemical (PEC) cells and spintronic applications. We report here on polarization methods allowing to electrically polarize prototypical samples of BaTiO{sub 3} (001) films. Epitaxial single crystalline layers were grown up to a thickness of 25 nm by atomic oxygen assisted molecular beam epitaxy on 1 at.% Nb doped SrTiO{sub 3} (001) single crystals. The samples were both microscopically and macroscopically polarized using Piezoresponse Force Microscopy and electrochemical poling in an electrolyte respectively. In addition we demonstrate the possibility to retrieve a quasi-native mixed ferroelectric polarization state after annealing. These polarization methods may be applied to many other ferroelectric thin films. - Highlights: • Ferroelectricity of BaTiO{sub 3} layers can be micro- and macroscopically controlled. • Microscopic ferroelectric domains are defined with piezoresponse force microscopy. • Poling in a LiClO{sub 4} electrolyte is a macroscopic poling method. • Air annealing above the Curie temperature “resets” the polarization state.

Determination of ferroelectric contributions to electromechanical response by frequency dependent piezoresponse force microscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Seol, Daehee; Park, Seongjae; Varenyk, Olexandr V; Lee, Shinbuhm; Lee, Ho Nyung; Morozovska, Anna N; Kim, Yunseok

2016-07-28

Hysteresis loop analysis via piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM) is typically performed to probe the existence of ferroelectricity at the nanoscale. However, such an approach is rather complex in accurately determining the pure contribution of ferroelectricity to the PFM. Here, we suggest a facile method to discriminate the ferroelectric effect from the electromechanical (EM) response through the use of frequency dependent ac amplitude sweep with combination of hysteresis loops in PFM. Our combined study through experimental and theoretical approaches verifies that this method can be used as a new tool to differentiate the ferroelectric effect from the other factors that contribute to the EM response.

Graphene Dirac point tuned by ferroelectric polarization field

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Xudong; Chen, Yan; Wu, Guangjian; Wang, Jianlu; Tian, Bobo; Sun, Shuo; Shen, Hong; Lin, Tie; Hu, Weida; Kang, Tingting; Tang, Minghua; Xiao, Yongguang; Sun, Jinglan; Meng, Xiangjian; Chu, Junhao

2018-04-01

Graphene has received numerous attention for future nanoelectronics and optoelectronics. The Dirac point is a key parameter of graphene that provides information about its carrier properties. There are lots of methods to tune the Dirac point of graphene, such as chemical doping, impurities, defects, and disorder. In this study, we report a different approach to tune the Dirac point of graphene using a ferroelectric polarization field. The Dirac point can be adjusted to near the ferroelectric coercive voltage regardless its original position. We have ensured this phenomenon by temperature-dependent experiments, and analyzed its mechanism with the theory of impurity correlation in graphene. Additionally, with the modulation of ferroelectric polymer, the current on/off ratio and mobility of graphene transistor both have been improved. This work provides an effective method to tune the Dirac point of graphene, which can be readily used to configure functional devices such as p-n junctions and inverters.

Above-room-temperature ferroelectricity and antiferroelectricity in benzimidazoles

Science.gov (United States)

Horiuchi, Sachio; Kagawa, Fumitaka; Hatahara, Kensuke; Kobayashi, Kensuke; Kumai, Reiji; Murakami, Youichi; Tokura, Yoshinori

2012-12-01

The imidazole unit is chemically stable and ubiquitous in biological systems; its proton donor and acceptor moieties easily bind molecules into a dipolar chain. Here we demonstrate that chains of these amphoteric molecules can often be bistable in electric polarity and electrically switchable, even in the crystalline state, through proton tautomerization. Polarization-electric field (P-E) hysteresis experiments reveal a high electric polarization ranging from 5 to 10 μC cm-2 at room temperature. Of these molecules, 2-methylbenzimidazole allows ferroelectric switching in two dimensions due to its pseudo-tetragonal crystal symmetry. The ferroelectricity is also thermally robust up to 400 K, as is that of 5,6-dichloro-2-methylbenzimidazole (up to ~373 K). In contrast, three other benzimidazoles exhibit double P-E hysteresis curves characteristic of antiferroelectricity. The diversity of imidazole substituents is likely to stimulate a systematic exploration of various structure-property relationships and domain engineering in the quest for lead- and rare-metal-free ferroelectric devices.

Ferroelectric materials for FeRAMs; FeRAM yo kyoyudentai zairyo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miyasaka, Y [NEC Corp., Tokyo (Japan)

1998-10-01

Studies to utilize bistable spontaneous polarization of ferroelectric materials for non-volatile memory have already been started in the 1950`s. Recently, a possibility was indicated on a high-speed non-volatile RAM (FeRAM) with memory cell configuration combined with switching transistors as in DRAMs. This situation has led to performing very active studies on ferroelectric materials and electrode materials used in ferroelectric film cell capacitors. This paper summarizes the above research and development circumstances, as well as their future problems. On the other hand of having shown excellent fatigue resistance in the SrBi2Ta209(SBT) system, improvement has progressed steadily on the Pb(ZR, Ti)03 (abbreviated to PZT) system, which retains the mainstream position as the ferroelectric material for FeRAMs. Aiming at realizing a high integration FeRAM in the future will require discussions on property changes due to use of lower temperature and micronization in film formation, further improvement in relation with degradation such as in imprint, and elucidation of the mechanism. 31 refs., 3 figs.

Charging and switching of ferroelectrets: how much can ferroelectrets behave like ferroelectrics?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schwoediauer, R.; Graz, I.; Bauer, S.

2004-01-01

Dielectrics with good charge storage capability, so called charge electrets, are non or weakly-polar materials. Despite their non-polar nature porous charge electrets with internally charged surfaces can exhibit very pronounced piezoelectricity. Such systems have been termed 'ferroelectrets' and they have been receiving growing attention over the last few years. Their puzzling and unexpected features resemble very much those normally known from traditional ferroelectrics: ferroelectrets are piezo- and pyroelectric, their polarization can be reversed by means of an external field and electrical as well as mechanical hysteresis loops were observed. As conventional ferroelectrics are different and more complicated than ferromagnets, so are ferroelectrets different and more complex than most ferroelectrics. Here we report about the very different charging and switching mechanism in ferroelectrets, both in simple model-systems and in less simple foam structures. These mechanisms are crucial and form the basis for the striking phenomenological similarities to ferroelectrics. We also want to address some of the specific peculiarities and pitfalls related to present ferroelectrets and their characterization. Interfacial charge injection at high electric fields and anelastic non-linearities, for instance, can be the cause for false ferroelectric-like hysteresis effects which do not reflect any polarization reversal. Our contribution is an attempt towards a more comprehensive picture of how much ferroelectrets behave like ferroelectrics. (author)

Giant Magnetoelectric Energy Conversion Utilizing Inter-Ferroelectric Phase Transformations in Ferroics

Science.gov (United States)

Finkel, Peter; Staruch, Margo

Phase transition-based electromechanical transduction permits achieving a non-resonant broadband mechanical energy conversion see (Finkel et al Actuators, 5 [1] 2. (2015)) , the idea is based on generation high energy density per cycle , at least 100x of magnitude larger than linear piezoelectric type generators in stress biased [011]cut relaxor ferroelectric Pb(In1/2Nb1/2)O3-Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-PbTiO3 (PIN-PMN-PT) single crystal can generate reversible strain >0.35% at remarkably low fields (0.1 MV/m) for tens of millions of cycles. Recently we demonstrated that large strain and polarization rotation can be generated for over 40 x 106cycles with little fatigue by realization of reversible ferroelectric-ferroelectric phase transition in [011] cut PIN-PMN-PT relaxor ferroelectric single crystal while sweeping through the transition with a low applied electric field <0.18 MV/m under mechanical stress. This methodology was extended in the present work to propose magnetoelectric (ME) composite hybrid system comprised of highly magnetostrictive alloymFe81.4Ga18.6 (Galfenol), and lead indium niobate-lead magnesium niobate-lead titanate (PIN-PMN-PT) domain engineered relaxor ferroelectric single crystal. A small time-varying magnetic field applied to this system causes the magnetostrictive element to expand, and the resulting stress forces the phase change in the relaxor ferroelectric single crystal. ME coupling coefficient was fond to achieve 80 V/cm Oe near the FR-FO phase transition that is at least 100X of magnitude higher than any currently reported values.

The application of nonlinear dynamics in the study of ferroelectric materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blochwitz, S.; Habel, R.; Diestelhorst, M.; Beige, H.

1996-01-01

It is well known that the structural phase transitions in ferroelectric materials are connected with strong nonlinear properties. So we can expect all features of nonlinear dynamical systems such as period-doubling cascades and chaos in a dynamical system that contains ferroelectric materials. Therefore we can apply nonlinear dynamics to these ferroelectric materials and we are doing it in two directions: (i) We study the structural phase transitions by analyzing the large signal behaviour with means of nonlinear dynamics. (ii) We control the chaotic behaviour of the system with the method proposed by Ott, Grebogi and Yorke. (authors)

Modelling of dielectric hysteresis loops in ferroelectric semiconductors with charged defects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morozovska, Anna N; Eliseev, Eugene A

2004-01-01

We have proposed the phenomenological description of dielectric hysteresis loops in ferroelectric semiconductors with charged defects and prevailing extrinsic conductivity. We have modified the Landau-Ginsburg approach and shown that the macroscopic state of the aforementioned inhomogeneous system can be described by three coupled equations for three order parameters. Both the experimentally observed coercive field values well below the thermodynamic values and the various hysteresis-loop deformations (constricted and double loops) have been obtained in the framework of our model. The obtained results quantitatively explain the ferroelectric switching in such ferroelectric materials as thick PZT films

Spin-driven ferroelectricity and magneto-electric effects in frustrated magnetic systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arima, Taka-hisa

2011-01-01

The interplay between magnetism and electricity in matter has become a central issue of condensed-matter physics. This review focuses on the ferroelectricity induced by magnetic order mostly in frustrated magnets, which is nowadays referred to as magneto-electric (ME) multiferroic, or often only as multiferroic. Some distinct types of microscopic origins relevant to the spin-driven ferroelectricity are discussed in detail. Then one sees that the frustration-based spin-driven ferroelectrics can exhibit nonlinear and giant ME responses of phase-transition type and of domain-control type, in contrast to the conventional magnetoelectrics hosting linear ME effects. (author)

Voltage tunability of thermal conductivity in ferroelectric materials

Science.gov (United States)

Ihlefeld, Jon; Hopkins, Patrick Edward

2016-02-09

A method to control thermal energy transport uses mobile coherent interfaces in nanoscale ferroelectric films to scatter phonons. The thermal conductivity can be actively tuned, simply by applying an electrical potential across the ferroelectric material and thereby altering the density of these coherent boundaries to directly impact thermal transport at room temperature and above. The invention eliminates the necessity of using moving components or poor efficiency methods to control heat transfer, enabling a means of thermal energy control at the micro- and nano-scales.

Graded ferroelectrics, transpacitors and transponents

CERN Document Server

Mantese, Joseph V

2005-01-01

The text details the experimental and theoretical aspects of newly emerging ferroelectric devices, and their extensions to other ferroic systems such as: ferromagnetics, ferroelastics, piezoelectrics, etc. The theory and experimental results pertaining to non-homogeneous active ferroic devices and structures are presented.

Tunable ferroelectric polarization and its interplay with spin-orbit coupling in tin iodide perovskites

Science.gov (United States)

Stroppa, Alessandro; di Sante, Domenico; Barone, Paolo; Bokdam, Menno; Kresse, Georg; Franchini, Cesare; Whangbo, Myung-Hwan; Picozzi, Silvia

2014-12-01

Ferroelectricity is a potentially crucial issue in halide perovskites, breakthrough materials in photovoltaic research. Using density functional theory simulations and symmetry analysis, we show that the lead-free perovskite iodide (FA)SnI3, containing the planar formamidinium cation FA, (NH2CHNH2)+, is ferroelectric. In fact, the perpendicular arrangement of FA planes, leading to a ‘weak’ polarization, is energetically more stable than parallel arrangements of FA planes, being either antiferroelectric or ‘strong’ ferroelectric. Moreover, we show that the ‘weak’ and ‘strong’ ferroelectric states with the polar axis along different crystallographic directions are energetically competing. Therefore, at least at low temperatures, an electric field could stabilize different states with the polarization rotated by π/4, resulting in a highly tunable ferroelectricity appealing for multistate logic. Intriguingly, the relatively strong spin-orbit coupling in noncentrosymmetric (FA)SnI3 gives rise to a co-existence of Rashba and Dresselhaus effects and to a spin texture that can be induced, tuned and switched by an electric field controlling the ferroelectric state.

Characterization of ion beam induced nanostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ghatak, J.; Satpati, B.; Umananda, M.; Kabiraj, D.; Som, T.; Dev, B.N.; Akimoto, K.; Ito, K.; Emoto, T.; Satyam, P.V.

2006-01-01

Tailoring of nanostructures with energetic ion beams has become an active area of research leading to the fundamental understanding of ion-solid interactions at nanoscale regime and with possible applications in the near future. Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and asymmetric X-ray Bragg-rocking curve experimental methods have been used to characterize ion-induced effects in nanostructures. The possibility of surface and sub-surface/interface alloying at nano-scale regime, ion-beam induced embedding, crater formation, sputtering yield variations for systems with isolated nanoislands, semi-continuous and continuous films of noble metals (Au, Ag) deposited on single crystalline silicon will be reviewed. MeV-ion induced changes in specified Au-nanoislands on silicon substrate are tracked as a function of ion fluence using ex situ TEM. Strain induced in the bulk silicon substrate surface due to 1.5 MeV Au 2+ and C 2+ ion beam irradiation is determined by using HRTEM and asymmetric Bragg X-ray rocking curve methods. Preliminary results on 1.5 MeV Au 2+ ion-induced effects in nanoislands of Co deposited on silicon substrate will be discussed

Percolation Magnetism in Ferroelectric Nanoparticles

Science.gov (United States)

Golovina, Iryna S.; Lemishko, Serhii V.; Morozovska, Anna N.

2017-06-01

Nanoparticles of potassium tantalate (KTaO3) and potassium niobate (KNbO3) were synthesized by oxidation of metallic tantalum in molten potassium nitrate with the addition of potassium hydroxide. Magnetization curves obtained on these ferroelectric nanoparticles exhibit a weak ferromagnetism, while these compounds are nonmagnetic in a bulk. The experimental data are used as a start point for theoretical calculations. We consider a microscopic mechanism that leads to the emerging of a ferromagnetic ordering in ferroelectric nanoparticles. Our approach is based on the percolation of magnetic polarons assuming the dominant role of the oxygen vacancies. It describes the formation of surface magnetic polarons, in which an exchange interaction between electrons trapped in oxygen vacancies is mediated by magnetic impurity Fe3+ ions. The dependences of percolation radius on concentration of the oxygen vacancies and magnetic defects are determined in the framework of percolation theory.

Percolation Magnetism in Ferroelectric Nanoparticles.

Science.gov (United States)

Golovina, Iryna S; Lemishko, Serhii V; Morozovska, Anna N

2017-12-01

Nanoparticles of potassium tantalate (KTaO 3 ) and potassium niobate (KNbO 3 ) were synthesized by oxidation of metallic tantalum in molten potassium nitrate with the addition of potassium hydroxide. Magnetization curves obtained on these ferroelectric nanoparticles exhibit a weak ferromagnetism, while these compounds are nonmagnetic in a bulk. The experimental data are used as a start point for theoretical calculations. We consider a microscopic mechanism that leads to the emerging of a ferromagnetic ordering in ferroelectric nanoparticles. Our approach is based on the percolation of magnetic polarons assuming the dominant role of the oxygen vacancies. It describes the formation of surface magnetic polarons, in which an exchange interaction between electrons trapped in oxygen vacancies is mediated by magnetic impurity Fe 3+ ions. The dependences of percolation radius on concentration of the oxygen vacancies and magnetic defects are determined in the framework of percolation theory.

Nanostructured sodium lithium niobate and lithium niobium tantalate solid solutions obtained by controlled crystallization of glass

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Radonjic, L.; Todorovic, M.; Miladinovic, J.

2005-01-01

Transparent, nanostructured glass ceramics based on ferroelectric solid solutions of the type Na 1-x Li x NbO 3 (in very narrow composition regions for x = 0.12 and 0.93) and LiNb 1-y Ta y O 3 (y = 0.5 unlimited solid solubility), can be obtained by controlled crystallization of glass. The parent glass samples were prepared by conventional melt-quenching technique. Heat-treatment of the parent glasses was performed at the various temperatures, for the same time. The glass structure evolution during the controlled crystallization was examined by FT-IR spectroscopy analysis. Crystalline phases were identified by X-ray diffraction analysis and SEM was used for microstructure characterization. Densities of the crystallized glasses were measured by Archimedean principle. The capacitance and dielectric loss tangent were measured at a frequency of 1 kHz, at the room temperature. It was found that in the all investigated systems crystallize solid solutions Na 1-x Li x NbO 3 and LiNb 1-y Ta y O 3 in the glassy matrix, have crystal size on nanoscale (less than 100 nm), which is one of requirements to get a transparent glass ceramic that could be a good ferroelectric material regarding to the measured properties

Ferroelectric capped magnetization in multiferroic PZT/LSMO tunnel junctions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kumar, Ashok, E-mail: ashok553@nplindia.org; Shukla, A. K. [National Physical Laboratory (CSIR), Dr. K. S. Krishnan Road, New Delhi-110012 (India); Barrionuevo, D.; Ortega, N.; Katiyar, Ram S. [Department of Physics and Institute of Functional Nanomaterials, University of Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00931-3343 (United States); Shannigrahi, Santiranjan [Institute of Materials Research and Engineering - IMRE, Agency for Science Technology and Research (A-STAR), 3 Research Link, Singapore 117602 (Singapore); Scott, J. F. [Department of Chemistry and Department of Physics, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews KY16 ST (United Kingdom)

2015-03-30

Self-poled ultra-thin ferroelectric PbZr{sub 0.52}Ti{sub 0.48}O{sub 3} (PZT) (5 and 7 nm) films have been grown by pulsed laser deposition technique on ferromagnetic La{sub 0.67}Sr{sub 0.33}MnO{sub 3} (LSMO) (30 nm) to check the effect of polar capping on magnetization for ferroelectric tunnel junction devices. PZT/LSMO heterostructures with thick polar PZT (7 nm) capping show nearly 100% enhancement in magnetization compared with thin polar PZT (5 nm) films, probably due to excess hole transfer from the ferroelectric to the ferromagnetic layers. Core-level x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy studies revealed the presence of larger Mn 3s exchange splitting and higher Mn{sup 3+}/Mn{sup 4+} ion ratio in the LSMO with 7 nm polar capping.

Structural, magnetic and electrical properties of ferromagnetic/ferroelectric multilayers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sirena, M.; Kaul, E.; Guimpel, J.; Steren, L. B.; Pedreros, M. B.; Rodriguez, C. A.

2011-01-01

The La 0.75 Sr 0.25 MnO 3 (LSMO)/Ba 0.7 Sr 0.3 TiO 3 (BSTO) superlattices and bilayers, where LSMO is ferromagnetic and BSTO is ferroelectric, were grown by dc sputtering. X-ray diffraction indicates that the samples present a textured growth with the c axis perpendicular to the substrate. Magnetization measurements show a decrease of the sample's magnetization for decreasing ferromagnetic thickness. This effect could be related to the presence of biaxial strain and a magnetic dead layer in the samples. Conductive atomic force microscopy indicates that the samples present a total covering of the ferromagnetic layer for a ferroelectric thickness higher than four unit cells. Transport tunneling of the carriers seems to be the preferred conduction mechanism through the ferroelectric layer. These are promising results for the development of multiferroic tunnel junctions.

Photonic Heterostructures with Properties of Ferroelectrics and Light Polarizers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Palto, S. P., E-mail: palto@online.ru; Draginda, Yu A [Russian Academy of Sciences, Shubnikov Institute of Crystallography (Russian Federation)

2010-11-15

The optical and electro-optical properties of a new type of photonic heterostructure composed of alternating ferroelectric molecular layers and optically anisotropic layers of another material are considered. A numerical simulation of the real prototype of this heterostructure, which can be prepared by the Langmuir-Blodgett method from layers of a ferroelectric copolymer (polyvinylidene fluoride trifluoroethylene) and an azo dye with photoinduced optical anisotropy, has been performed. It is shown that this heterostructure has pronounced polarization optical properties and yields a significant change in the polarization state of light at the photonic band edges in the ranges of the maximum density of photon states. The latter property can be used to obtain an enhanced electro-optic effect at small spectral shifts of the photonic band (the latter can be provided by the piezoelectric effect in ferroelectric layers).

High energy storage capacitor by embedding tunneling nano-structures

Science.gov (United States)

Holme, Timothy P; Prinz, Friedrich B; Van Stockum, Philip B

2014-11-04

In an All-Electron Battery (AEB), inclusions embedded in an active region between two electrodes of a capacitor provide enhanced energy storage. Electrons can tunnel to/from and/or between the inclusions, thereby increasing the charge storage density relative to a conventional capacitor. One or more barrier layers is present in an AEB to block DC current flow through the device. The AEB effect can be enhanced by using multi-layer active regions having inclusion layers with the inclusions separated by spacer layers that don't have the inclusions. The use of cylindrical geometry or wrap around electrodes and/or barrier layers in a planar geometry can enhance the basic AEB effect. Other physical effects that can be employed in connection with the AEB effect are excited state energy storage, and formation of a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC).

Domain switching of fatigued ferroelectric thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Tak Lim, Yun; Yeog Son, Jong; Shin, Young-Han

2014-05-01

We investigate the domain wall speed of a ferroelectric PbZr0.48Ti0.52O3 (PZT) thin film using an atomic force microscope incorporated with a mercury-probe system to control the degree of electrical fatigue. The depolarization field in the PZT thin film decreases with increasing the degree of electrical fatigue. We find that the wide-range activation field previously reported in ferroelectric domains result from the change of the depolarization field caused by the electrical fatigue. Domain wall speed exhibits universal behavior to the effective electric field (defined by an applied electric field minus the depolarization field), regardless of the degree of the electrical fatigue.

Domain switching of fatigued ferroelectric thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tak Lim, Yun; Yeog Son, Jong; Shin, Young-Han

2014-01-01

We investigate the domain wall speed of a ferroelectric PbZr 0.48 Ti 0.52 O 3 (PZT) thin film using an atomic force microscope incorporated with a mercury-probe system to control the degree of electrical fatigue. The depolarization field in the PZT thin film decreases with increasing the degree of electrical fatigue. We find that the wide-range activation field previously reported in ferroelectric domains result from the change of the depolarization field caused by the electrical fatigue. Domain wall speed exhibits universal behavior to the effective electric field (defined by an applied electric field minus the depolarization field), regardless of the degree of the electrical fatigue

Acoustic emission mechanism at switching of ferroelectric crystals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Belov, V.V.; Morozova, G.P.; Serdobol'skaya, O.Yu.

1986-01-01

Process of acoustic emission (AE) in lead germanate (PGO) representing pure ferroelectric, and gadolinium molybdate (GMO) representing ferroelectric-ferroelastic, for which switching may be conducted both by the field and pressure, were studied. A conclusion has been drawn that piezoelectric excitation of a crystal from the surface by pulses of overpolarization current in the process of domain coalescence is the main AE source in PGO. Not only piezoresponse, but also direct sound generation in the moment of domain penetration and collapse is considered as AE mechanism in GMO

Acoustic emission mechanism at switching of ferroelectric crystals

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Belov, V V; Morozova, G P; Serdobol' skaya, O Yu

1986-01-01

Process of acoustic emission (AE) in lead germanate (PGO) representing pure ferroelectric, and gadolinium molybdate (GMO) representing ferroelectric-ferroelastic, for which switching may be conducted both by the field and pressure, were studied. A conclusion has been drawn that piezoelectric excitation of a crystal from the surface by pulses of overpolarization current in the process of domain coalescence is the main AE source in PGO. Not only piezoresponse, but also direct sound generation in the moment of domain penetration and collapse is considered as AE mechanism in GMO.

Ferroelectric tunnel junctions with multi-quantum well structures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ma, Zhijun; Zhang, Tianjin, E-mail: zhangtj@hubu.edu.cn [Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for the Green Preparation and Application of Functional Materials, Hubei University, Wuhan 430062 (China); Hubei Collaborative Innovation Center for Advanced Organic Chemical Materials, Hubei University, Wuhan 430062 (China); Liang, Kun; Qi, Yajun; Wang, Duofa; Wang, Jinzhao; Jiang, Juan [Hubei Collaborative Innovation Center for Advanced Organic Chemical Materials, Hubei University, Wuhan 430062 (China)

2014-06-02

Ferroelectric tunnel junctions (FTJs) with multi-quantum well structures are proposed and the tunneling electroresistance (TER) effect is investigated theoretically. Compared with conventional FTJs with monolayer ferroelectric barriers, FTJs with single-well structures provide TER ratio improvements of one order of magnitude, while FTJs with optimized multi-well structures can enhance this improvement by another order of magnitude. It is believed that the increased resonant tunneling strength combined with appropriate asymmetry in these FTJs contributes to the improvement. These studies may help to fabricate FTJs with large TER ratio experimentally and put them into practice.

Morphology-dependent photo-induced polarization recovery in ferroelectric thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, J. Y.; Liu, G.; Sando, D.; Nagarajan, V.; Seidel, J.

2017-08-01

We investigate photo-induced ferroelectric domain switching in a series of Pb(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3/La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 (PZT/LSMO) bilayer thin films with varying surface morphologies by piezoresponse force microscopy under light illumination. We demonstrate that reverse poled ferroelectric regions can be almost fully recovered under laser irradiation of the PZT layer and that the recovery process is dependent on the surface morphology on the nanometer scale. The recovery process is well described by the Kolmogorov-Avrami-Ishibashi model, and the evolution speed is controlled by light intensity, sample thickness, and initial write voltage. Our findings shed light on optical control of the domain structure in ferroelectric thin films with different surface morphologies.

A study of radiation vulnerability of ferroelectric material and devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Coiec, Y.M.; Musseau, O.; Leray, J.L.

1994-01-01

The radiation effects on ferroelectric material and devices are presented, based on commercially available samples. After recalling the background, effects in ferroelectric PZT capacitors are presented, concerning dose, neutrons and fatigue associated with dose effects. Physical implications and interpretations are sketched. In a second stage, effects are studied at the complete non-volatile RAM device level. Vulnerability in dose, dose rate and neutron fluence of commercial 4 kbit ferroelectric RAM is addressed. 64 kbit results are mentioned in dose rate. These results are compared to previously published data from other manufacturers or laboratories and supplement them. In the appendix, equivalence between rad(Si) and rad (PZT) is discussed in the case of low energy ''10 keV Aracor'' x-rays and 60 Co gamma rays

Diffusion slowdown in the nanostructured liquid Ga-Sn alloy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Podorozhkin, Dmitri Y.; Charnaya, Elena V.; Lee, Min Kai; Chang, Lieh-Jeng; Haase, Juergen; Michel, Dieter; Kumzerov, Yurii A.; Fokin, Alexsandr V.

2015-01-01

The diffusion of gallium in liquid Ga-Sn alloy embedded into different porous silica matrices was studied by NMR. Spin relaxation was measured for two gallium isotopes, 71 Ga and 69 Ga, at two magnetic fields. Pronounced rise of quadrupole contribution to relaxation was observed for the nanostructured alloy which increased with decreasing the pore size. The correlation time of atomic mobility was evaluated and found to be much larger than in the relevant bulk melt which evidenced a pronounced diffusion slowdown in the Ga-Sn alloy under nanoconfinement. It is shown that the diffusion was slower by a factor of 30 for the alloy within 7 nm pores. The spectral densities of electric field gradients at zero frequency were found to double for the finest pores. The Knight shift was found to decrease but slightly for the nanostructured alloy. (copyright 2015 by WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Critical properties of a ferroelectric superlattice described by a transverse spin-1/2 Ising model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tabyaoui, A; Saber, M; Baerner, K; Ainane, A

2007-01-01

The phase transition properties of a ferroelectric superlattice with two alternating layers A and B described by a transverse spin-1/2 Ising model have been investigated using the effective field theory within a probability distribution technique that accounts for the self spin correlation functions. The Curie temperature T c , polarization and susceptibility have been obtained. The effects of the transverse field and the ferroelectric and antiferroelectric interfacial coupling strength between two ferroelectric materials are discussed. They relate to the physical properties of antiferroelectric/ferroelectric superlattices

Frontiers of ferroelectricity a special issue of the journal of materials science

CERN Document Server

Lang, Sidney B

2007-01-01

The book presents theory, fundamentals and some applications of ferroelectricy. The 24 chapters comprise reviews and research reports covering the spectrum of ferroelectricity. It is intended to describe the current levels of understanding of various aspects of ferroelectricity as presented by authorities in the field. Topics include relaxors, piezoelectrics, microscale and nanoscale studies, polymers and composites, unusual properties, and techniques and devices. The information in this book is intended for physicists, engineers and materials scientists working with ferroelectric materials including ceramics, single crystals, polymers, composites and even some biological materials.

Space-charge Effect on Electroresistance in Metal-Ferroelectric-Metal capacitors

Science.gov (United States)

Tian, Bo Bo; Liu, Yang; Chen, Liu Fang; Wang, Jian Lu; Sun, Shuo; Shen, Hong; Sun, Jing Lan; Yuan, Guo Liang; Fusil, Stéphane; Garcia, Vincent; Dkhil, Brahim; Meng, Xiang Jian; Chu, Jun Hao

2015-12-01

Resistive switching through electroresistance (ER) effect in metal-ferroelectric-metal (MFM) capacitors has attracted increasing interest due to its potential applications as memories and logic devices. However, the detailed electronic mechanisms resulting in large ER when polarisation switching occurs in the ferroelectric barrier are still not well understood. Here, ER effect up to 1000% at room temperature is demonstrated in C-MOS compatible MFM nanocapacitors with a 8.8 nm-thick poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) homopolymer ferroelectric, which is very promising for silicon industry integration. Most remarkably, using theory developed for metal-semiconductor rectifying contacts, we derive an analytical expression for the variation of interfacial barrier heights due to space-charge effect that can interpret the observed ER response. We extend this space-charge model, related to the release of trapped charges by defects, to MFM structures made of ferroelectric oxides. This space-charge model provides a simple and straightforward tool to understand recent unusual reports. Finally, this work suggests that defect-engineering could be an original and efficient route for tuning the space-charge effect and thus the ER performances in future electronic devices.

Total-dose radiation-induced degradation of thin film ferroelectric capacitors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schwank, J.R.; Nasby, R.D.; Miller, S.L.; Rodgers, M.S.; Dressendorfer, P.V.

1990-01-01

Thin film PbZr y Ti 1-y O 3 (PZT) ferroelectric memories offer the potential for radiation-hardened, high-speed nonvolatile memories with good retention and fatigue properties. In this paper we explore in detail the radiation hardness of PZT ferroelectric capacitors. Ferroelectric capacitors were irradiated using x-ray and Co-60 sources to dose levels up to 16 Mrad(Si). The capacitors were characterized for their memory properties both before and after irradiation. The radiation hardness was process dependent. Three out of four processes resulted in capacitors that showed less than 30% radiation-induced degradation in retained polarization charge and remanent polarization after irradiating to 16 Mrad(Si). On the other hand, one of the processes showed significant radiation-induced degradation in retained polarization charge and remanent polarization at dose levels above 1 Mrad(Si). The decrease in retained polarization charge appears to be due to an alteration of the switching characteristics of the ferroelectric due to changes in the internal fields. The radiation-induced degradation is recoverable by a postirradiation biased anneal and can be prevented entirely if devices are cycled during irradiation. The authors have developed a model to simulate the observed degradation

Operation of Ferroelectric Plasma Sources in a Gas Discharge Mode

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dunaevsky, A.; Fisch, N.J.

2004-01-01

Ferroelectric plasma sources in vacuum are known as sources of ablative plasma, formed due to surface discharge. In this paper, observations of a gas discharge mode of operation of the ferroelectric plasma sources (FPS) are reported. The gas discharge appears at pressures between approximately 20 and approximately 80 Torr. At pressures of 1-20 Torr, there is a transition from vacuum surface discharge to the gas discharge, when both modes coexist and the surface discharges sustain the gas discharge. At pressures between 20 and 80 Torr, the surface discharges are suppressed, and FPS operate in pure gas discharge mode, with the formation of almost uniform plasma along the entire surface of the ceramics between strips. The density of the expanding plasma is estimated to be about 1013 cm-3 at a distance of 5.5 mm from the surface. The power consumption of the discharge is comparatively low, making it useful for various applications. This paper also presents direct measurements of the yield of secondary electron emission from ferroelectric ceramics, which, at low energies of primary electrons, is high and dependent on the polarization of the ferroelectric material

Organic ferroelectric opto-electronic memories

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Asadi, K.; Li, M.; Blom, P.W.M.; Kemerink, M.; Leeuw, D.M. de

2011-01-01

Memory is a prerequisite for many electronic devices. Organic non-volatile memory devices based on ferroelectricity are a promising approach towards the development of a low-cost memory technology based on a simple cross-bar array. In this review article we discuss the latest developments in this

Enhanced ductility in thermally sprayed titania coating synthesized using a nanostructured feedstock

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lima, R.S.; Marple, B.R.

2005-01-01

Nanostructured and conventional titania (TiO 2 ) feedstock powders were thermally sprayed via high velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF). The microstructure, porosity, Vickers hardness, crack propagation resistance, bond strength (ASTM C633), abrasion behavior (ASTM G65) and the wear scar characteristics of these two types of coatings were analyzed and compared. The coating made from the nanostructured feedstock exhibited a bimodal microstructure, with regions containing particles that were fully molten (conventional matrix) and regions with embedded particles that were semi-molten (nanostructured zones) during the thermal spraying process. The bimodal coating also exhibited higher bond strength and higher wear resistance when compared to the conventional coating. By comparing the wear scars of both coatings (via scanning electron microscopy and roughness measurements) it was observed that when the coatings were subjected to the same abrasive conditions the wear scar of the bimodal coating was smoother, with more plastically deformed regions than the conventional coating. It was concluded that this enhanced ductility of the bimodal coating was caused by its higher toughness. The results suggest that nanostructured zones randomly distributed in the microstructure of the bimodal coating act as crack arresters, thereby enhancing toughness and promoting higher critical depth of cut, which provides a broader plastic deformation range than that exhibited by the conventional coating. This work provides evidence that the enhanced ductility of the bimodal coating is a nanostructured-related property, not caused by any other microstructural artifact

Nanodomain Engineering in Ferroelectric Capacitors with Graphene Electrodes.

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Haidong; Wang, Bo; Li, Tao; Lipatov, Alexey; Lee, Hyungwoo; Rajapitamahuni, Anil; Xu, Ruijuan; Hong, Xia; Farokhipoor, Saeedeh; Martin, Lane W; Eom, Chang-Beom; Chen, Long-Qing; Sinitskii, Alexander; Gruverman, Alexei

2016-10-12

Polarization switching in ferroelectric capacitors is typically realized by application of an electrical bias to the capacitor electrodes and occurs via a complex process of domain structure reorganization. As the domain evolution in real devices is governed by the distribution of the nucleation centers, obtaining a domain structure of a desired configuration by electrical pulsing is challenging, if not impossible. Recent discovery of polarization reversal via the flexoelectric effect has opened a possibility for deterministic control of polarization in ferroelectric capacitors. In this paper, we demonstrate mechanical writing of arbitrary-shaped nanoscale domains in thin-film ferroelectric capacitors with graphene electrodes facilitated by a strain gradient induced by a tip of an atomic force microscope (AFM). A phase-field modeling prediction of a strong effect of graphene thickness on the threshold load required to initiate mechanical switching has been confirmed experimentally. Deliberate voltage-free domain writing represents a viable approach for development of functional devices based on domain topology and electronic properties of the domains and domain walls.

Electric field cycling behavior of ferroelectric hafnium oxide.

Science.gov (United States)

Schenk, Tony; Schroeder, Uwe; Pešić, Milan; Popovici, Mihaela; Pershin, Yuriy V; Mikolajick, Thomas

2014-11-26

HfO2 based ferroelectrics are lead-free, simple binary oxides with nonperovskite structure and low permittivity. They just recently started attracting attention of theoretical groups in the fields of ferroelectric memories and electrostatic supercapacitors. A modified approach of harmonic analysis is introduced for temperature-dependent studies of the field cycling behavior and the underlying defect mechanisms. Activation energies for wake-up and fatigue are extracted. Notably, all values are about 100 meV, which is 1 order of magnitude lower than for conventional ferroelectrics like lead zirconate titanate (PZT). This difference is mainly atttributed to the one to two orders of magnitude higher electric fields used for cycling and to the different surface to volume ratios between the 10 nm thin films in this study and the bulk samples of former measurements or simulations. Moreover, a new, analog-like split-up effect of switching peaks by field cycling is discovered and is explained by a network model based on memcapacitive behavior as a result of defect redistribution.

Improper ferroelectric polarization in a perovskite driven by intersite charge transfer and ordering

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Wei-Tin; Wang, Chin-Wei; Wu, Hung-Cheng; Chou, Fang-Cheng; Yang, Hung-Duen; Simonov, Arkadiy; Senn, M. S.

2018-04-01

It is of great interest to design and make materials in which ferroelectric polarization is coupled to other order parameters such as lattice, magnetic, and electronic instabilities. Such materials will be invaluable in next-generation data storage devices. Recently, remarkable progress has been made in understanding improper ferroelectric coupling mechanisms that arise from lattice and magnetic instabilities. However, although theoretically predicted, a compact lattice coupling between electronic and ferroelectric (polar) instabilities has yet to be realized. Here we report detailed crystallographic studies of a perovskite HgAMn3A'Mn4BO12 that is found to exhibit a polar ground state on account of such couplings that arise from charge and orbital ordering on both the A'- and B-sites, which are themselves driven by a highly unusual MnA '-MnB intersite charge transfer. The inherent coupling of polar, charge, orbital, and hence magnetic degrees of freedom make this a system of great fundamental interest, and demonstrating ferroelectric switching in this and a host of recently reported hybrid improper ferroelectrics remains a substantial challenge.

Analytic device including nanostructures

KAUST Repository

Di Fabrizio, Enzo M.; Fratalocchi, Andrea; Totero Gongora, Juan Sebastian; Coluccio, Maria Laura; Candeloro, Patrizio; Cuda, Gianni

2015-01-01

A device for detecting an analyte in a sample comprising: an array including a plurality of pixels, each pixel including a nanochain comprising: a first nanostructure, a second nanostructure, and a third nanostructure, wherein size of the first nanostructure is larger than that of the second nanostructure, and size of the second nanostructure is larger than that of the third nanostructure, and wherein the first nanostructure, the second nanostructure, and the third nanostructure are positioned on a substrate such that when the nanochain is excited by an energy, an optical field between the second nanostructure and the third nanostructure is stronger than an optical field between the first nanostructure and the second nanostructure, wherein the array is configured to receive a sample; and a detector arranged to collect spectral data from a plurality of pixels of the array.

Fracture mechanics of piezoelectric and ferroelectric solids

CERN Document Server

Fang, Daining

2013-01-01

Fracture Mechanics of Piezoelectric and Ferroelectric Solids presents a systematic and comprehensive coverage of the fracture mechanics of piezoelectric/ferroelectric materials, which includes the theoretical analysis, numerical computations and experimental observations. The main emphasis is placed on the mechanics description of various crack problems such static, dynamic and interface fractures as well as the physical explanations for the mechanism of electrically induced fracture. The book is intended for postgraduate students, researchers and engineers in the fields of solid mechanics, applied physics, material science and mechanical engineering. Dr. Daining Fang is a professor at the School of Aerospace, Tsinghua University, China; Dr. Jinxi Liu is a professor at the Department of Engineering Mechanics, Shijiazhuang Railway Institute, China.

A study of radiation vulnerability of ferroelectric material and devices

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Coic, Y M; Musseau, O; Leray, J L [CEA Centre d` Etudes de Bruyeres-le-Chatel, 91 (France)

1994-12-31

The radiation effects on ferroelectric material and devices are presented, based on commercially available samples. After recalling the background, effects in ferroelectric PZT capacitors are presented, concerning dose, neutrons and fatigue associated with dose effects. Physical implications and interpretations are sketched. In a second stage, effects are studied at the complete non-volatile RAM device level. Vulnerability in dose, dose rate and neutron fluence of commercial 4 kbit ferroelectric RAM is addressed. 64 kbit results are mentioned in dose rate. These results are compared to previously published data from other manufacturers or laboratories and supplement them. In the appendix, equivalence between rad (Si) and rad (PZT) is discussed in the case of low energy ``10 keV Aracor`` s-rays and {sup 60}Co gamma rays. (author). 24 refs., 11 figs., 7 tabs.

A study of radiation vulnerability of ferroelectric material and devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Coic, Y.M.; Musseau, O.; Leray, J.L.

1994-01-01

The radiation effects on ferroelectric material and devices are presented, based on commercially available samples. After recalling the background, effects in ferroelectric PZT capacitors are presented, concerning dose, neutrons and fatigue associated with dose effects. Physical implications and interpretations are sketched. In a second stage, effects are studied at the complete non-volatile RAM device level. Vulnerability in dose, dose rate and neutron fluence of commercial 4 kbit ferroelectric RAM is addressed. 64 kbit results are mentioned in dose rate. These results are compared to previously published data from other manufacturers or laboratories and supplement them. In the appendix, equivalence between rad (Si) and rad (PZT) is discussed in the case of low energy ''10 keV Aracor'' s-rays and 60 Co gamma rays. (author). 24 refs., 11 figs., 7 tabs

Ferroelectric polymer gates for non-volatile field effect control of ferromagnetism in (Ga, Mn)As layers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stolichnov, I; Riester, S W E; Mikheev, E; Setter, N; Rushforth, A W; Edmonds, K W; Campion, R P; Foxon, C T; Gallagher, B L; Jungwirth, T; Trodahl, H J

2011-01-01

(Ga, Mn)As and other diluted magnetic semiconductors (DMS) attract a great deal of attention for potential spintronic applications because of the possibility of controlling the magnetic properties via electrical gating. Integration of a ferroelectric gate on the DMS channel adds to the system a non-volatile memory functionality and permits nanopatterning via the polarization domain engineering. This topical review is focused on the multiferroic system, where the ferromagnetism in the (Ga, Mn)As DMS channel is controlled by the non-volatile field effect of the spontaneous polarization. Use of ferroelectric polymer gates in such heterostructures offers a viable alternative to the traditional oxide ferroelectrics generally incompatible with DMS. Here we review the proof-of-concept experiments demonstrating the ferroelectric control of ferromagnetism, analyze the performance issues of the ferroelectric gates and discuss prospects for further development of the ferroelectric/DMS heterostructures toward the multiferroic field effect transistor. (topical review)

Subsurface thermal behaviour of tissue mimics embedded with large blood vessels during plasmonic photo-thermal therapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Paul, Anup; Narasimhan, Arunn; Das, Sarit K; Sengupta, Soujit; Pradeep, Thalappil

2016-11-01

The purpose of this study was to understand the subsurface thermal behaviour of a tissue phantom embedded with large blood vessels (LBVs) when exposed to near-infrared (NIR) radiation. The effect of the addition of nanoparticles to irradiated tissue on the thermal sink behaviour of LBVs was also studied. Experiments were performed on a tissue phantom embedded with a simulated blood vessel of 2.2 mm outer diameter (OD)/1.6 mm inner diameter (ID) with a blood flow rate of 10 mL/min. Type I collagen from bovine tendon and agar gel were used as tissue. Two different nanoparticles, gold mesoflowers (AuMS) and graphene nanostructures, were synthesised and characterised. Energy equations incorporating a laser source term based on multiple scattering theories were solved using finite element-based commercial software. The rise in temperature upon NIR irradiation was seen to vary according to the position of the blood vessel and presence of nanoparticles. While the maximum rise in temperature was about 10 °C for bare tissue, it was 19 °C for tissue embedded with gold nanostructures and 38 °C for graphene-embedded tissues. The axial temperature distribution predicted by computational simulation matched the experimental observations. A different subsurface temperature distribution has been obtained for different tissue vascular network models. The position of LBVs must be known in order to achieve optimal tissue necrosis. The simulation described here helps in predicting subsurface temperature distributions within tissues during plasmonic photo-thermal therapy so that the risks of damage and complications associated with in vivo experiments and therapy may be avoided.

Liquid crystals with novel terminal chains as ferroelectric liquid crystal hosts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cosquer, G.Y.

2000-02-01

Changes to the molecular structure of liquid crystals can have a significant effect upon their mesomorphism and ferroelectric properties. Most of the research in liquid crystal for display applications concentrates on the design and synthesis of novel mesogenic cores to which straight terminal alkyl or alkoxy chains are attached. However, little is known about the effects upon the mesomorphism and ferroelectric properties of varying the terminal chains. The compounds prepared in this work have a common core - a 2,3-difluoroterphenyl unit with a nine-atom alkyl (nonyl) or alkoxy (octyloxy) chain at the 4-position, but with an unusual chain at the 4''-position. In some cases the terminal chain contains hetero atoms such as silicon, oxygen, chlorine and bromine or has a bulky end group. In total 46 final materials were synthesised in an attempt to understand the effect of an unusual terminal chains on mesomorphism and for some of these compounds the effect upon the switching times when added to a standard ferroelectric mixture were investigated. It was found that most compounds containing a bulky end group only displayed a smectic C phase, compounds with a halogen substituent as an end unit displayed a smectic A phase and that increasing the chain flexibility by introducing an oxygen atom in the chain reduces the melting and clearing points. The electro-optical measurements carried out on ferroelectric mixtures containing a bulky end group compound showed that shorter switching times were produced than for the ferroelectric mixture containing a straight chain compound. It is suggested that a bulky end group diminishes te extent of interlayer mixing in the chiral smectic C phase and therefore the molecules move more easily with ferroelectric switching. (author)

Pulse-modulated multilevel data storage in an organic ferroelectric resistive memory diode

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lee, J.; Breemen, A.J.J.M. van; Khikhlovskyi, V.; Kemerink, M.; Janssen, R.A.J.; Gelinck, G.H.

2016-01-01

We demonstrate multilevel data storage in organic ferroelectric resistive memory diodes consisting of a phase-separated blend of P(VDF-TrFE) and a semiconducting polymer. The dynamic behaviour of the organic ferroelectric memory diode can be described in terms of the inhomogeneous field mechanism

Ferroelectric properties of Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 films under ion-beam induced strain

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Jung-Kun; Nastasi, Michael

2012-11-01

The influence of an ion-beam induced biaxial stress on the ferroelectric and dielectric properties of Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 (PZT) films is investigated using the ion beam process as a novel approach to control external stress. Tensile stress is observed to decrease the polarization, permittivity, and ferroelectric fatigue resistance of the PZT films whose structure is monoclinic. However, a compressive stress increases all of them in monoclinic PZT films. The dependence of the permittivity on stress is found not to follow the phenomenological theory relating external forces to intrinsic properties of ferroelectric materials. Changes in the ferroelectric and dielectric properties indicate that the application of a biaxial stress modulates both extrinsic and intrinsic properties of PZT films. Different degrees of dielectric non-linearity suggests the density and mobility of non-180o domain walls, and the domain switching can be controlled by an applied biaxial stress and thereby influence the ferroelectric and dielectric properties.

A Review of Domain Modelling and Domain Imaging Techniques in Ferroelectric Crystals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

John E. Huber

2011-02-01

Full Text Available The present paper reviews models of domain structure in ferroelectric crystals, thin films and bulk materials. Common crystal structures in ferroelectric materials are described and the theory of compatible domain patterns is introduced. Applications to multi-rank laminates are presented. Alternative models employing phase-field and related techniques are reviewed. The paper then presents methods of observing ferroelectric domain structure, including optical, polarized light, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray and neutron diffraction, atomic force microscopy and piezo-force microscopy. Use of more than one technique for unambiguous identification of the domain structure is also described.

Polarization reversal in BaTiO{sub 3} nanostructures synthesized by microwave-assisted hydrothermal method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Velasco-Davalos, Ivan; Ambriz-Vargas, Fabian [Centre Énergie, Matériaux et Télécommunications, INRS, 1650 Lionel-Boulet, Varennes, Québec J3X1S2 (Canada); Gómez-Yáñez, Carlos [Departamento de Ingeniería en Metalurgia y Materiales, ESIQIE, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, UPALM, Zacatenco, CP 07738 DF, México (Mexico); Thomas, Reji, E-mail: reji.thomas@emt.inrs.ca [Centre Énergie, Matériaux et Télécommunications, INRS, 1650 Lionel-Boulet, Varennes, Québec J3X1S2 (Canada); Ruediger, Andreas, E-mail: ruediger@emt.inrs.ca [Centre Énergie, Matériaux et Télécommunications, INRS, 1650 Lionel-Boulet, Varennes, Québec J3X1S2 (Canada)

2016-05-15

Ferroelectric BaTiO{sub 3} nanostructures and thin films were deposited by a microwave assisted hydrothermal process at low temperatures (<250 °C) on metallic Pt/Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}/SiO{sub 2}/Si and Nb:SrTiO{sub 3} (100) substrates. TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles dispersed in the Ba(OH){sub 2} alkaline solution are used as the precursors without any mineralizers. The incorporation of H{sub 2}O{sub 2} into precursor solution served as a strong oxidant and catalyst for the uniform nucleation of BaTiO{sub 3} on the substrate surface. The polycrystalline and epitaxial nature of the films were confirmed by atomic force microscopy and x-ray diffraction studies. We report the ferroelectric behavior of BaTiO{sub 3} films on Nb:SrTiO{sub 3} (100) substrates by piezoresponse force microscopy. - Highlights: • Microwave assisted hydrothermal deposition of highly ordered BaTiO{sub 3} thin films on single crystal substrates. • Fast growth without the needof any mineralizers. • Moderate addition of H{sub 2}O{sub 2} significantly improves the surface coverage. • H{sub 2}O{sub 2} substantially reduces hydrogen incorporation into the film and the associated leakage current. • Out-of-plane polarization reversal demonstrated locally.

Ferroelectricity with Ferromagnetic Moment in Orthoferrites

Science.gov (United States)

Tokunaga, Yusuke

2010-03-01

Exotic multiferroics with gigantic magnetoelectric (ME) coupling have recently been attracting broad interests from the viewpoints of both fundamental physics and possible technological application to next-generation spintronic devices. To attain a strong ME coupling, it would be preferable that the ferroelectric order is induced by the magnetic order. Nevertheless, the magnetically induced ferroelectric state with the spontaneous ferromagnetic moment is still quite rare apart from a few conical-spin multiferroics. To further explore multiferroic materials with both the strong ME coupling and spontaneous magnetization, we focused on materials with magnetic structures other than conical structure. In this talk we present that the most orthodox perovskite ferrite systems DyFeO3 and GdFeO3 have ``ferromagnetic-ferroelectric,'' i.e., genuinely multiferroic states in which weak ferromagnetic moment is induced by Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction working on Fe spins and electric polarization originates from the striction due to symmetric exchange interaction between Fe and Dy (Gd) spins [1] [2]. Both materials showed large electric polarization (>0.1 μC/cm^2) and strong ME coupling. In addition, we succeeded in mutual control of magnetization and polarization with electric- and magnetic-fields in GdFeO3, and attributed the controllability to novel, composite domain wall structure. [4pt] [1] Y. Tokunaga et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 097205 (2008). [0pt] [2] Y. Tokunaga et al., Nature Mater. 8, 558 (2009).

Rewritable ferroelectric vortex pairs in BiFeO3

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Yang; Jin, Yaming; Lu, Xiaomei; Yang, Jan-Chi; Chu, Ying-Hao; Huang, Fengzhen; Zhu, Jinsong; Cheong, Sang-Wook

2017-08-01

Ferroelectric vortex in multiferroic materials has been considered as a promising alternative to current memory cells for the merit of high storage density. However, the formation of regular natural ferroelectric vortex is difficult, restricting the achievement of vortex memory device. Here, we demonstrated the creation of ferroelectric vortex-antivortex pairs in BiFeO3 thin films by using local electric field. The evolution of the polar vortex structure is studied by piezoresponse force microscopy at nanoscale. The results reveal that the patterns and stability of vortex structures are sensitive to the poling position. Consecutive writing and erasing processes cause no influence on the original domain configuration. The Z4 proper coloring vortex-antivortex network is then analyzed by graph theory, which verifies the rationality of artificial vortex-antivortex pairs. This study paves a foundation for artificial regulation of vortex, which provides a possible pathway for the design and realization of non-volatile vortex memory devices and logical devices.

Ferroelectric Polarization in Nanocrystalline Hydroxyapatite Thin Films on Silicon

Science.gov (United States)

Lang, S. B.; Tofail, S. A. M.; Kholkin, A. L.; Wojtaś, M.; Gregor, M.; Gandhi, A. A.; Wang, Y.; Bauer, S.; Krause, M.; Plecenik, A.

2013-01-01

Hydroxyapatite nanocrystals in natural form are a major component of bone- a known piezoelectric material. Synthetic hydroxyapatite is widely used in bone grafts and prosthetic pyroelectric coatings as it binds strongly with natural bone. Nanocrystalline synthetic hydroxyapatite films have recently been found to exhibit strong piezoelectricity and pyroelectricity. While a spontaneous polarization in hydroxyapatite has been predicted since 2005, the reversibility of this polarization (i.e. ferroelectricity) requires experimental evidence. Here we use piezoresponse force microscopy to demonstrate that nanocrystalline hydroxyapatite indeed exhibits ferroelectricity: a reversal of polarization under an electrical field. This finding will strengthen investigations on the role of electrical polarization in biomineralization and bone-density related diseases. As hydroxyapatite is one of the most common biocompatible materials, our findings will also stimulate systematic exploration of lead and rare-metal free ferroelectric devices for potential applications in areas as diverse as in vivo and ex vivo energy harvesting, biosensing and electronics. PMID:23884324

Room temperature ferroelectricity in continuous croconic acid thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jiang, Xuanyuan; Lu, Haidong; Yin, Yuewei; Ahmadi, Zahra; Costa, Paulo S. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska 68588 (United States); Zhang, Xiaozhe [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska 68588 (United States); Department of Physics, Xi' an Jiaotong University, Xi' an 710049 (China); Wang, Xiao; Yu, Le; Cheng, Xuemei [Department of Physics, Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania 19010 (United States); DiChiara, Anthony D. [Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, Illinois 60439 (United States); Gruverman, Alexei, E-mail: alexei-gruverman@unl.edu, E-mail: a.enders@me.com, E-mail: xiaoshan.xu@unl.edu; Enders, Axel, E-mail: alexei-gruverman@unl.edu, E-mail: a.enders@me.com, E-mail: xiaoshan.xu@unl.edu; Xu, Xiaoshan, E-mail: alexei-gruverman@unl.edu, E-mail: a.enders@me.com, E-mail: xiaoshan.xu@unl.edu [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska 68588 (United States); Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska 68588 (United States)

2016-09-05

Ferroelectricity at room temperature has been demonstrated in nanometer-thin quasi 2D croconic acid thin films, by the polarization hysteresis loop measurements in macroscopic capacitor geometry, along with observation and manipulation of the nanoscale domain structure by piezoresponse force microscopy. The fabrication of continuous thin films of the hydrogen-bonded croconic acid was achieved by the suppression of the thermal decomposition using low evaporation temperatures in high vacuum, combined with growth conditions far from thermal equilibrium. For nominal coverages ≥20 nm, quasi 2D and polycrystalline films, with an average grain size of 50–100 nm and 3.5 nm roughness, can be obtained. Spontaneous ferroelectric domain structures of the thin films have been observed and appear to correlate with the grain patterns. The application of this solvent-free growth protocol may be a key to the development of flexible organic ferroelectric thin films for electronic applications.

Ferroelectricity the fundamentals collection

CERN Document Server

Jimenez, Basilio

2008-01-01

This indispensable collection of seminal papers on ferroelectricity provides an overview over almost a hundred years of basic and applied research. Containing historic contributions from renowned authors, this book presents developments in an area of science that is still rapidly growing. Although primarily aimed at scientists and academics involved in research, this will also be of use to students as well as newcomers to the field.

Light-Activated Gigahertz Ferroelectric Domain Dynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Akamatsu, Hirofumi; Yuan, Yakun; Stoica, Vladimir A.; Stone, Greg; Yang, Tiannan; Hong, Zijian; Lei, Shiming; Zhu, Yi; Haislmaier, Ryan C.; Freeland, John W.; Chen, Long-Qing; Wen, Haidan; Gopalan, Venkatraman

2018-03-01

Using time- and spatially resolved hard x-ray diffraction microscopy, the striking structural and electrical dynamics upon optical excitation of a single crystal of BaTiO3 are simultaneously captured on subnanoseconds and nanoscale within individual ferroelectric domains and across walls. A large emergent photoinduced electric field of up to 20 ×106 V /m is discovered in a surface layer of the crystal, which then drives polarization and lattice dynamics that are dramatically distinct in a surface layer versus bulk regions. A dynamical phase-field modeling method is developed that reveals the microscopic origin of these dynamics, leading to gigahertz polarization and elastic waves traveling in the crystal with sonic speeds and spatially varying frequencies. The advances in spatiotemporal imaging and dynamical modeling tools open up opportunities for disentangling ultrafast processes in complex mesoscale structures such as ferroelectric domains.

Phase dependence of optical bistability and multistability in a four-level quantum system near a plasmonic nanostructure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Asadpour, Seyyed Hossein; Rahimpour Soleimani, H.

2016-01-01

The optical bistability and multistability properties of a four-level quantum system near a plasmonic nanostructure embedded in a unidirectional ring cavity are studied theoretically. Two orthogonal circularly polarized laser fields with the same frequency, different phases and electric fields amplitude are interacted by four-level quantum system. It is found that in the presence of the plasmonic nanostructure, the bistable behaviors related to one of the laser fields propagating through the unidirectional ring cavity can be modified by relative phase and amplitude control of another laser fields. Our obtained results show that the optical bistability can be converted into the optical multistability by varying the value of distance between the quantum system and the surface of the plasmonic nanostructure. Moreover, it is shown that under specific condition related to the distance, the lasing without population inversion can be obtained

Phase dependence of optical bistability and multistability in a four-level quantum system near a plasmonic nanostructure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Asadpour, Seyyed Hossein; Rahimpour Soleimani, H., E-mail: Rahimpour@guilan.ac.ir [Computational Nanophysics Laboratory (CNL), Department of Physics, University of Guilan, Rasht (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2016-01-14

The optical bistability and multistability properties of a four-level quantum system near a plasmonic nanostructure embedded in a unidirectional ring cavity are studied theoretically. Two orthogonal circularly polarized laser fields with the same frequency, different phases and electric fields amplitude are interacted by four-level quantum system. It is found that in the presence of the plasmonic nanostructure, the bistable behaviors related to one of the laser fields propagating through the unidirectional ring cavity can be modified by relative phase and amplitude control of another laser fields. Our obtained results show that the optical bistability can be converted into the optical multistability by varying the value of distance between the quantum system and the surface of the plasmonic nanostructure. Moreover, it is shown that under specific condition related to the distance, the lasing without population inversion can be obtained.

Polarization-dependent interfacial coupling modulation of ferroelectric photovoltaic effect in PZT-ZnO heterostructures.

Science.gov (United States)

Pan, Dan-Feng; Bi, Gui-Feng; Chen, Guang-Yi; Zhang, Hao; Liu, Jun-Ming; Wang, Guang-Hou; Wan, Jian-Guo

2016-03-08

Recently, ferroelectric perovskite oxides have drawn much attention due to potential applications in the field of solar energy conversion. However, the power conversion efficiency of ferroelectric photovoltaic effect currently reported is far below the expectable value. One of the crucial problems lies in the two back-to-back Schottky barriers, which are formed at the ferroelectric-electrode interfaces and blocking most of photo-generated carriers to reach the outside circuit. Herein, we develop a new approach to enhance the ferroelectric photovoltaic effect by introducing the polarization-dependent interfacial coupling effect. Through inserting a semiconductor ZnO layer with spontaneous polarization into the ferroelectric ITO/PZT/Au film, a p-n junction with strong polarization-dependent interfacial coupling effect is formed. The power conversion efficiency of the heterostructure is improved by nearly two orders of magnitude and the polarization modulation ratio is increased about four times. It is demonstrated that the polarization-dependent interfacial coupling effect can give rise to a great change in band structure of the heterostructure, not only producing an aligned internal electric field but also tuning both depletion layer width and potential barrier height at PZT-ZnO interface. This work provides an efficient way in developing highly efficient ferroelectric-based solar cells and novel optoelectronic memory devices.

Simulation of fatigue damage in ferroelectric polycrystals under mechanical/electrical loading

Science.gov (United States)

Kozinov, S.; Kuna, M.

2018-07-01

The reliability of smart-structures made of ferroelectric ceramics is essentially reduced by the formation of cracks under the action of external electrical and/or mechanical loading. In the current research a numerical model for low-cycle fatigue in ferroelectric mesostructures is proposed. In the finite element simulations a combination of two user element routines is utilized. The first one is used to model a micromechanical ferroelectric domain switching behavior inside the grains. The second one is used to simulate fatigue damage of grain boundaries by a cohesive zone model (EMCCZM) based on an electromechanical cyclic traction-separation law (TSL). For numerical simulations a scanning electron microscope image of the ceramic's grain structure was digitalized and meshed. The response of this mesostructure to cyclic electrical or mechanical loading is systematically analyzed. As a result of the simulations, the distribution of electric potential, field, displacement and polarization as well as mechanical stresses and deformations inside the grains are obtained. At the grain boundaries, the formation and evolution of damage are analyzed until final failure and induced degradation of electric permittivity. It is found that the proposed model correctly mimics polycrystalline behavior during poling processes and progressive damage under cyclic electromechanical loading. To the authors' knowledge, it is the first model and numerical analysis of ferroelectric polycrystals taking into account both domain reorientation and cohesive modeling of intergranular fracture. It can help to understand failure mechanisms taking place in ferroelectrics during fatigue processes.

Organic ferroelectric memory devices with inkjet-printed polymer electrodes on flexible substrates

KAUST Repository

Bhansali, Unnat Sampatraj

2013-05-01

Drop-on-demand piezoelectric inkjet-printing technique has been used to fabricate a functional cross-bar array of all-organic ferroelectric memory devices. The polymer-ferroelectric-polymer device consists of a ferroelectric copolymer P(VDF-TrFE) film sandwiched between inkjet-patterned, continuous, orthogonal lines of PEDOT:PSS polymer as the bottom and top electrodes. These devices exhibit well-saturated hysteresis curves with a maximum remnant polarization (Pr) = 6.7 μC/cm2, coercive field (E c) = 55 MV/m and a peak capacitance density of 45 nF/cm2. Our polarization fatigue measurements show that these devices retain ∼100% and 45% of their initial Pr values after 103 and 10 5 stress cycles, respectively. The overall performance and polarization retention characteristics of these ferroelectric capacitors with inkjet-printed polymer electrodes are comparable to metal and spin-cast polymer electrodes suggesting their potential use in large-area flexible electronics. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hysteresis loop behaviors of ferroelectric thin films:A Monte Carlo simulation study

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

C. M. Bedoya-Hincapi´e; H. H. Ortiz-´Alvarez; E. Restrepo-Parra; J. J. Olaya-Fl´orez; J. E. Alfonso

2015-01-01

The ferroelectric response of bismuth titanate Bi4Ti3O12 (BIT) thin film is studied through a Monte Carlo simulation of hysteresis loops. The ferroelectric system is described by using a Diffour Hamiltonian with three terms: the electric field applied in the z direction, the nearest dipole–dipole interaction in the transversal (x–y) direction, and the nearest dipole–dipole interaction in the direction perpendicular to the thin film (the z axis). In the sample construction, we take into consideration the dipole orientations of the monoclinic and orthorhombic structures that can appear in BIT at low temperature in the ferroelectric state. The effects of temperature, stress, and the concentration of pinned dipole defects are assessed by using the hysteresis loops. The results indicate the changes in the hysteresis area with temperature and stress, and the asymmetric hysteresis loops exhibit evidence of the imprint failure mechanism with the emergence of pinned dipolar defects. The simulated shift in the hysteresis loops conforms to the experimental ferroelectric response.

Ferroelectric-antiferroelectric mixed systems. Equation of state, thermodynamic functions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N.A.Korynevskii

2006-01-01

Full Text Available The problem of equation of state for ferroelectric-antiferroelectric mixed systems in the whole region of a concentration change (0≤n≤1 is discussed. The main peculiarity of the presented model turns out to be the possibility for the site dipole momentum to be oriented ferroelectrically in z-direction and antiferroelectrically in x-direction. Such a situation takes place in mixed compounds of KDP type. The different phases (ferro-, antiferro-, paraelectric, dipole glass and some combinations of them have been found and analyzed.

Polarization-induced transport in organic field-effect transistors: the role of ferroelectric dielectrics

Science.gov (United States)

Guha, Suchismita; Laudari, Amrit

2017-08-01

The ferroelectric nature of polymer ferroelectrics such as poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) has been known for over 45 years. However, its role in interfacial transport in organic/polymeric field-effect transistors (FETs) is not that well understood. Dielectrics based on PVDF and its copolymers are a perfect test-bed for conducting transport studies where a systematic tuning of the dielectric constant with temperature may be achieved. The charge transport mechanism in an organic semiconductor often occurs at the intersection of band-like coherent motion and incoherent hopping through localized states. By choosing two small molecule organic semiconductors - pentacene and 6,13 bis(triisopropylsilylethynyl)pentacene (TIPS-pentacene) - along with a copolymer of PVDF (PVDF-TrFe) as the dielectric layer, the transistor characteristics are monitored as a function of temperature. A negative coefficient of carrier mobility is observed in TIPS-pentacene upwards of 200 K with the ferroelectric dielectric. In contrast, TIPS-pentacene FETs show an activated transport with non-ferroelectric dielectrics. Pentacene FETs, on the other hand, show a weak temperature dependence of the charge carrier mobility in the ferroelectric phase of PVDF-TrFE, which is attributed to polarization fluctuation driven transport resulting from a coupling of the charge carriers to the surface phonons of the dielectric layer. Further, we show that there is a strong correlation between the nature of traps in the organic semiconductor and interfacial transport in organic FETs, especially in the presence of a ferroelectric dielectric.

Recent Developments of Nanostructured Electrodes for Bioelectrocatalysis of Dioxygen Reduction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marcin Opallo

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The recent development of nanostructured electrodes for bioelectrocatalytic dioxygen reduction catalysed by two copper oxidoreductases, laccase and bilirubin oxidase, is reviewed. Carbon-based nanomaterials as carbon nanotubes or carbon nanoparticles are frequently used for electrode modification, whereas there are only few examples of biocathodes modified with metal or metal oxide nanoparticles. These nanomaterials are adsorbed on the electrode surface or embedded in multicomponent film. The nano-objects deposited act as electron shuttles between the enzyme and the electrode substrate providing favourable conditions for mediatorless bioelectrocatalysis.

Nonlinear modeling of ferroelectric-ferromagnetic composites based on condensed and finite element approaches (Presentation Video)

Science.gov (United States)

Ricoeur, Andreas; Lange, Stephan; Avakian, Artjom

2015-04-01

Magnetoelectric (ME) coupling is an inherent property of only a few crystals exhibiting very low coupling coefficients at low temperatures. On the other hand, these materials are desirable due to many promising applications, e.g. as efficient data storage devices or medical or geophysical sensors. Efficient coupling of magnetic and electric fields in materials can only be achieved in composite structures. Here, ferromagnetic (FM) and ferroelectric (FE) phases are combined e.g. including FM particles in a FE matrix or embedding fibers of the one phase into a matrix of the other. The ME coupling is then accomplished indirectly via strain fields exploiting magnetostrictive and piezoelectric effects. This requires a poling of the composite, where the structure is exposed to both large magnetic and electric fields. The efficiency of ME coupling will strongly depend on the poling process. Besides the alignment of local polarization and magnetization, it is going along with cracking, also being decisive for the coupling properties. Nonlinear ferroelectric and ferromagnetic constitutive equations have been developed and implemented within the framework of a multifield, two-scale FE approach. The models are microphysically motivated, accounting for domain and Bloch wall motions. A second, so called condensed approach is presented which doesn't require the implementation of a spatial discretisation scheme, however still considering grain interactions and residual stresses. A micromechanically motivated continuum damage model is established to simulate degradation processes. The goal of the simulation tools is to predict the different constitutive behaviors, ME coupling properties and lifetime of smart magnetoelectric devices.

Nonlinear piezoelectricity in epitaxial ferroelectrics at high electric fields.

Science.gov (United States)

Grigoriev, Alexei; Sichel, Rebecca; Lee, Ho Nyung; Landahl, Eric C; Adams, Bernhard; Dufresne, Eric M; Evans, Paul G

2008-01-18

Nonlinear effects in the coupling of polarization with elastic strain have been predicted to occur in ferroelectric materials subjected to high electric fields. Such predictions are tested here for a PbZr0.2Ti0.8O3 ferroelectric thin film at electric fields in the range of several hundred MV/m and strains reaching up to 2.7%. The piezoelectric strain exceeds predictions based on constant piezoelectric coefficients at electric fields from approximately 200 to 400 MV/m, which is consistent with a nonlinear effect predicted to occur at corresponding piezoelectric distortions.

Organometal Halide Perovskite Solar Absorbers and Ferroelectric Nanocomposites for Harvesting Solar Energy

Science.gov (United States)

Hettiarachchi, Chaminda Lakmal

Organometal halide perovskite absorbers such as methylammonium lead iodide chloride (CH3NH3PbI3-xClx), have emerged as an exciting new material family for photovoltaics due to its appealing features that include suitable direct bandgap with intense light absorbance, band gap tunability, ultra-fast charge carrier generation, slow electron-hole recombination rates, long electron and hole diffusion lengths, microsecond-long balanced carrier mobilities, and ambipolarity. The standard method of preparing CH3NH3PbI3-xClx perovskite precursors is a tedious process involving multiple synthesis steps and, the chemicals being used (hydroiodic acid and methylamine) are quite expensive. This work describes a novel, single-step, simple, and cost-effective solution approach to prepare CH3NH3PbI3-xClx thin films by the direct reaction of the commercially available CH3NH 3Cl (or MACl) and PbI2. A detailed analysis of the structural and optical properties of CH3NH3PbI3-xCl x thin films deposited by aerosol assisted chemical vapor deposition is presented. Optimum growth conditions have been identified. It is shown that the deposited thin films are highly crystalline with intense optical absorbance. Charge carrier separation of these thin films can be enhanced by establishing a local internal electric field that can reduce electron-hole recombination resulting in increased photo current. The intrinsic ferroelectricity in nanoparticles of Barium Titanate (BaTiO3 -BTO) embedded in the solar absorber can generate such an internal field. A hybrid structure of CH3NH 3PbI3-xClx perovskite and ferroelectric BTO nanocomposite FTO/TiO2/CH3NH3PbI3-xClx : BTO/P3HT/Cu as a new type of photovoltaic device is investigated. Aerosol assisted chemical vapor deposition process that is scalable to large-scale manufacturing was used for the growth of the multilayer structure. TiO 2 and P3HT with additives were used as ETL and HTL respectively. The growth process of the solar absorber layer includes the

Fabrication and characterisation of embedded metal nanostructures by ion implantation with nanoporous anodic alumina masks

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Guan, Wei [NanoLAB, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD (United Kingdom); School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Edinburgh, Mayfield Road, Edinburgh EH9 3JZ (United Kingdom); Peng, Nianhua, E-mail: n.peng@surrey.ac.uk [Surrey Ion Beam Centre, Surrey University, Guildford GU2 7XH (United Kingdom); Jeynes, Christopher [Surrey Ion Beam Centre, Surrey University, Guildford GU2 7XH (United Kingdom); Ghatak, Jay [NanoLAB, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD (United Kingdom); Peng, Yong [NanoLAB, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD (United Kingdom); School of Physical Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, 222 Tianshui Road, Lanzhou 730000 (China); Ross, Ian M. [Department of Electronic and Electric Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD (United Kingdom); Bhatta, Umananda M.; Inkson, Beverley J.; Möbus, Günter [NanoLAB, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD (United Kingdom)

2013-07-15

Lateral ordered Co, Pt and Co/Pt nanostructures were fabricated in SiO{sub 2} and Si{sub 3}N{sub 4} substrates by high fluence metal ion implantation through periodic nanochannel membrane masks based on anodic aluminium oxides (AAO). The quality of nanopatterning transfer defined by various AAO masks in different substrates was examined by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) in both imaging and spectroscopy modes.

Prospects and applications near ferroelectric quantum phase transitions: a key issues review

Science.gov (United States)

Chandra, P.; Lonzarich, G. G.; Rowley, S. E.; Scott, J. F.

2017-11-01

The emergence of complex and fascinating states of quantum matter in the neighborhood of zero temperature phase transitions suggests that such quantum phenomena should be studied in a variety of settings. Advanced technologies of the future may be fabricated from materials where the cooperative behavior of charge, spin and current can be manipulated at cryogenic temperatures. The progagating lattice dynamics of displacive ferroelectrics make them appealing for the study of quantum critical phenomena that is characterized by both space- and time-dependent quantities. In this key issues article we aim to provide a self-contained overview of ferroelectrics near quantum phase transitions. Unlike most magnetic cases, the ferroelectric quantum critical point can be tuned experimentally to reside at, above or below its upper critical dimension; this feature allows for detailed interplay between experiment and theory using both scaling and self-consistent field models. Empirically the sensitivity of the ferroelectric T c’s to external and to chemical pressure gives practical access to a broad range of temperature behavior over several hundreds of Kelvin. Additional degrees of freedom like charge and spin can be added and characterized systematically. Satellite memories, electrocaloric cooling and low-loss phased-array radar are among possible applications of low-temperature ferroelectrics. We end with open questions for future research that include textured polarization states and unusual forms of superconductivity that remain to be understood theoretically.

Two-dimensional ferroelectric topological insulators in functionalized atomically thin bismuth layers

Science.gov (United States)

Kou, Liangzhi; Fu, Huixia; Ma, Yandong; Yan, Binghai; Liao, Ting; Du, Aijun; Chen, Changfeng

2018-02-01

We introduce a class of two-dimensional (2D) materials that possess coexisting ferroelectric and topologically insulating orders. Such ferroelectric topological insulators (FETIs) occur in noncentrosymmetric atomic layer structures with strong spin-orbit coupling (SOC). We showcase a prototype 2D FETI in an atomically thin bismuth layer functionalized by C H2OH , which exhibits a large ferroelectric polarization that is switchable by a ligand molecule rotation mechanism and a strong SOC that drives a band inversion leading to the topologically insulating state. An external electric field that switches the ferroelectric polarization also tunes the spin texture in the underlying atomic lattice. Moreover, the functionalized bismuth layer exhibits an additional quantum order driven by the valley splitting at the K and K' points in the Brillouin zone stemming from the symmetry breaking and strong SOC in the system, resulting in a remarkable state of matter with the simultaneous presence of the quantum spin Hall and quantum valley Hall effect. These phenomena are predicted to exist in other similarly constructed 2D FETIs, thereby offering a unique quantum material platform for discovering novel physics and exploring innovative applications.

Wireless and embedded carbon nanotube networks for damage detection in concrete structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saafi, Mohamed

2009-01-01

Concrete structures undergo an uncontrollable damage process manifesting in the form of cracks due to the coupling of fatigue loading and environmental effects. In order to achieve long-term durability and performance, continuous health monitoring systems are needed to make critical decisions regarding operation, maintenance and repairs. Recent advances in nanostructured materials such as carbon nanotubes have opened the door for new smart and advanced sensing materials that could effectively be used in health monitoring of structures where wireless and real time sensing could provide information on damage development. In this paper, carbon nanotube networks were embedded into a cement matrix to develop an in situ wireless and embedded sensor for damage detection in concrete structures. By wirelessly measuring the change in the electrical resistance of the carbon nanotube networks, the progress of damage can be detected and monitored. As a proof of concept, wireless cement-carbon nanotube sensors were embedded into concrete beams and subjected to monotonic and cyclic loading to evaluate the effect of damage on their response. Experimental results showed that the wireless response of the embedded nanotube sensors changes due to the formation of cracks during loading. In addition, the nanotube sensors were able to detect the initiation of damage at an early stage of loading.

Wireless and embedded carbon nanotube networks for damage detection in concrete structures

Science.gov (United States)

Saafi, Mohamed

2009-09-01

Concrete structures undergo an uncontrollable damage process manifesting in the form of cracks due to the coupling of fatigue loading and environmental effects. In order to achieve long-term durability and performance, continuous health monitoring systems are needed to make critical decisions regarding operation, maintenance and repairs. Recent advances in nanostructured materials such as carbon nanotubes have opened the door for new smart and advanced sensing materials that could effectively be used in health monitoring of structures where wireless and real time sensing could provide information on damage development. In this paper, carbon nanotube networks were embedded into a cement matrix to develop an in situ wireless and embedded sensor for damage detection in concrete structures. By wirelessly measuring the change in the electrical resistance of the carbon nanotube networks, the progress of damage can be detected and monitored. As a proof of concept, wireless cement-carbon nanotube sensors were embedded into concrete beams and subjected to monotonic and cyclic loading to evaluate the effect of damage on their response. Experimental results showed that the wireless response of the embedded nanotube sensors changes due to the formation of cracks during loading. In addition, the nanotube sensors were able to detect the initiation of damage at an early stage of loading.

Modeling of Toroidal Ordering in Ferroelectric Nanodots

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Crone, Joshua C; Chung, Peter W

2007-01-01

.... Beginning with an introduction of basic concepts, the report reviews the current state-of-the-art of ferroelectric nanodot technology through a literature review and identifies areas of need for continued study...

Universal ferroelectric switching dynamics of vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene copolymer films

KAUST Repository

Hu, Weijin

2014-04-24

In this work, switching dynamics of poly(vinylidene fluoride- trifluoroethylene) [P(VDF-TrFE)] copolymer films are investigated over unprecedentedly wide ranges of temperature and electric field. Remarkably, domain switching of copolymer films obeys well the classical domain nucleation and growth model although the origin of ferroelectricity in organic ferroelectric materials inherently differs from the inorganic counterparts. A lower coercivity limit of 50 ...MV/m and 180 domain wall energy of 60 ...mJ/m 2 are determined for P(VDF-TrFE) films. Furthermore, we discover in copolymer films an anomalous temperature-dependent crossover behavior between two power-law scaling regimes of frequency-dependent coercivity, which is attributed to the transition between flow and creep motions of domain walls. Our observations shed new light on the switching dynamics of semi-crystalline ferroelectric polymers, and such understandings are critical for realizing their reliable applications.

Universal ferroelectric switching dynamics of vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene copolymer films

KAUST Repository

Hu, Weijin; Juo, Deng-Ming; You, Lu; Wang, Junling; Chen, Yi-Chun; Chu, Ying-Hao; Wu, Tao

2014-01-01

In this work, switching dynamics of poly(vinylidene fluoride- trifluoroethylene) [P(VDF-TrFE)] copolymer films are investigated over unprecedentedly wide ranges of temperature and electric field. Remarkably, domain switching of copolymer films obeys well the classical domain nucleation and growth model although the origin of ferroelectricity in organic ferroelectric materials inherently differs from the inorganic counterparts. A lower coercivity limit of 50 ...MV/m and 180 domain wall energy of 60 ...mJ/m 2 are determined for P(VDF-TrFE) films. Furthermore, we discover in copolymer films an anomalous temperature-dependent crossover behavior between two power-law scaling regimes of frequency-dependent coercivity, which is attributed to the transition between flow and creep motions of domain walls. Our observations shed new light on the switching dynamics of semi-crystalline ferroelectric polymers, and such understandings are critical for realizing their reliable applications.

Ferroelectric BaTiO3 thin films on Ti substrate fabricated using pulsed-laser deposition.

Science.gov (United States)

He, J; Jiang, J C; Liu, J; Collins, G; Chen, C L; Lin, B; Giurgiutiu, V; Guo, R Y; Bhalla, A; Meletis, E I

2010-09-01

We report on the fabrication of ferroelectric BaTiO3 thin films on titanium substrates using pulsed laser deposition and their microstructures and properties. Electron microscopy studies reveal that BaTiO3 films are composed of crystalline assemblage of nanopillars with average cross sections from 100 nm to 200 nm. The BaTiO3 films have good interface structures and strong adhesion with respect to Ti substrates by forming a rutile TiO2 intermediate layer with a gradient microstructure. The room temperature ferroelectric polarization measurements show that the as-deposited BTO films possess nearly the same spontaneous polarization as the bulk BTO ceramics indicating formation of ferroelectric domains in the films. Successful fabrication of such ferroelectric films on Ti has significant importance for the development of new applications such as structural health monitoring spanning from aerospace to civil infrastructure. The work can be extended to integrate other ferroelectric oxide films with various promising properties to monitor the structural health of materials.

Ferroelectric Plasma Source for Heavy Ion Beam Charge Neutralization

CERN Document Server

Efthimion, Philip; Gilson, Erik P; Grisham, Larry; Logan, B G; Waldron, William; Yu, Simon

2005-01-01

Plasmas are employed as a medium for charge neutralizing heavy ion beams to allow them to focus to a small spot size. Calculations suggest that plasma at a density of 1-100 times the ion beam density and at a length ~ 0.1-1 m would be suitable. To produce 1 meter plasma, large-volume plasma sources based upon ferroelectric ceramics are being considered. These sources have the advantage of being able to increase the length of the plasma and operate at low neutral pressures. The source will utilize the ferroelectric ceramic BaTiO3 to form metal plasma. The drift tube inner surface of the Neutralized Drift Compression Experiment (NDCX) will be covered with ceramic. High voltage (~ 1-5 kV) is applied between the drift tube and the front surface of the ceramic by placing a wire grid on the front surface. A prototype ferroelectric source 20 cm long produced plasma densities ~ 5x1011 cm-3. The source was integrated into the experiment and successfully charge neutralized the K ion beam. Presently, the 1 meter source ...

Why is the electrocaloric effect so small in ferroelectrics?

Science.gov (United States)

Guzman-Verri, Gian G.; Littlewood, Peter B.

2015-03-01

Ferroelectrics are attractive candidate materials for environmentally friendly solid state refrigeration free of greenhouse gases. Their thermal response upon variations of external electric fields is largest in the vicinity of their phase transitions, which may occur near room temperature. The magnitude of the effect, however, is too small for useful cooling applications even when they are driven close to dielectric breakdown. Insight from microscopic theory is therefore needed to characterize materials and provide guiding principles to search for new ones with enhanced electrocaloric performance. Here, we present meaningful figures of merit derived from well-known microscopic models of ferroelectricity which provide insight into the relation between the strength of the effect and the characteristic interactions of ferroelectrics such as dipole forces. We find that the long range nature of these interactions results in a small effect. A strategy is proposed to make it larger by shortening the correlation lengths of fluctuations of polarization. Work at Argonne is supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Basic Energy Sciences under Contract No. DE-AC02-06CH11357.

Phonon localization transition in relaxor ferroelectric PZN-5%PT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Manley, Michael E.; Christianson, Andrew D.; Abernathy, Douglas L.; Sahul, Raffi

2017-01-01

Relaxor ferroelectric behavior occurs in many disordered ferroelectric materials but is not well understood at the atomic level. Recent experiments and theoretical arguments indicate that Anderson localization of phonons instigates relaxor behavior by driving the formation of polar nanoregions (PNRs). Here, we use inelastic neutron scattering to observe phonon localization in relaxor ferroelectric PZN-5%PT (0.95[Pb(Zn 1/3 Nb 2/3 )O 3 ]–0.05PbTiO 3 ) and detect additional features of the localization process. In the lead, up to phonon localization on cooling, the local resonant modes that drive phonon localization increase in number. The increase in resonant scattering centers is attributed to a known increase in the number of locally off centered Pb atoms on cooling. The transition to phonon localization occurs when these random scattering centers increase to a concentration where the Ioffe-Regel criterion is satisfied for localizing the phonon. Finally, we also model the effects of damped mode coupling on the observed phonons and phonon localization structure.

Monte Carlo Simulation of Ferroelectric Domain Structure and Applied Field Response in Two Dimensions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Potter, Jr., B.G.; Tikare, V.; Tuttle, B.A.

1999-06-30

A 2-D, lattice-Monte Carlo approach was developed to simulate ferroelectric domain structure. The model currently utilizes a Hamiltonian for the total energy based only upon electrostatic terms involving dipole-dipole interactions, local polarization gradients and the influence of applied electric fields. The impact of boundary conditions on the domain configurations obtained was also examined. In general, the model exhibits domain structure characteristics consistent with those observed in a tetragonally distorted ferroelectric. The model was also extended to enable the simulation of ferroelectric hysteresis behavior. Simulated hysteresis loops were found to be very similar in appearance to those observed experimentally in actual materials. This qualitative agreement between the simulated hysteresis loop characteristics and real ferroelectric behavior was also confirmed in simulations run over a range of simulation temperatures and applied field frequencies.

Dynamic Observation of Brain-Like Learning in a Ferroelectric Synapse Device

Science.gov (United States)

Nishitani, Yu; Kaneko, Yukihiro; Ueda, Michihito; Fujii, Eiji; Tsujimura, Ayumu

2013-04-01

A brain-like learning function was implemented in an electronic synapse device using a ferroelectric-gate field effect transistor (FeFET). The FeFET was a bottom-gate type FET with a ZnO channel and a ferroelectric Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 (PZT) gate insulator. The synaptic weight, which is represented by the channel conductance of the FeFET, is updated by applying a gate voltage through a change in the ferroelectric polarization in the PZT. A learning function based on the symmetric spike-timing dependent synaptic plasticity was implemented in the synapse device using the multilevel weight update by applying a pulse gate voltage. The dynamic weighting and learning behavior in the synapse device was observed as a change in the membrane potential in a spiking neuron circuit.

Molecular dynamics simulations of ferroelectric domain formation by oxygen vacancy

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Lin; You, Jeong Ho; Chen, Jinghong; Yeo, Changdong

2018-05-01

An oxygen vacancy, known to be detrimental to ferroelectric properties, has been investigated numerically for the potential uses to control ferroelectric domains in films using molecular dynamics simulations based on the first-principles effective Hamiltonian. As an electron donor, an oxygen vacancy generates inhomogeneous electrostatic and displacement fields which impose preferred polarization directions near the oxygen vacancy. When the oxygen vacancies are placed at the top and bottom interfaces, the out-of-plane polarizations are locally developed near the interfaces in the directions away from the interfaces. These polarizations from the interfaces are in opposite directions so that the overall out-of-plane polarization becomes significantly reduced. In the middle of the films, the in-plane domains are formed with containing 90° a 1/a 2 domain walls and the films are polarized along the [1 1 0] direction even when no electric field is applied. With oxygen vacancies placed at the top interface only, the films exhibit asymmetric hysteresis loops, confirming that the oxygen vacancies are one of the possible sources of ferroelectric imprint. It has been qualitatively demonstrated that the domain structures in the imprint films can be turned on and off by controlling an external field along the thickness direction. This study shows qualitatively that the oxygen vacancies can be utilized for tuning ferroelectric domain structures in films.

Superdomain dynamics in ferroelectric-ferroelastic films: Switching, jamming, and relaxation

Science.gov (United States)

Scott, J. F.; Hershkovitz, A.; Ivry, Y.; Lu, H.; Gruverman, A.; Gregg, J. M.

2017-12-01

Recent experimental work shows that ferroelectric switching can occur in large jumps in which ferroelastic superdomains switch together, rather than having the numerous smaller ferroelectric domains switch within them. In this sense, the superdomains play a role analogous to that of Abrikosov vortices in thin superconducting films under the Kosterlitz-Thouless framework, which control the dynamics more than individual Cooper pairs within them do. Here, we examine the dynamics of ferroelastic superdomains in ferroelastic ferroelectrics and their role in switching devices such as memories. Jamming of ferroelectric domains in thin films has revealed an unexpected time dependence of t-1/4 at long times (hours), but it is difficult to discriminate between power-law and exponential relaxation. Other aspects of this work, including spatial period doubling of domains, led to a description of ferroelastic domains as nonlinear processes in a viscoelastic medium, which produce folding and metastable kinetically limited states. This ¼ exponent is a surprising agreement with the well-known value of ¼ for coarsening dynamics in viscoelastic media. We try to establish a link between these two processes, hitherto considered unrelated, and with superdomains and domain bundles. We note also that high-Tc superconductors share many of the ferroelastic domain properties discussed here and that several new solar cell materials and metal-insulator transition systems are ferroelastic.

Frustrated total internal reflection in organic light-emitting diodes employing sphere cavity embedded in polystyrene

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhu, Peifen

2016-01-01

The light extraction efficiency of top-emitting organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) is numerically investigated employing the finite-difference time-domain method. The periodic nanostructures formed by embedding the sphere arrays in polystyrene (PS) are placed on top of OLED to frustrate the total internal reflection at the interface between OLED and free space. These nanostructures serve as an intermediate medium to extract the light out of OLED devices. Efficiently coupling both evanescent waves and propagation waves into spheres and subsequently extracting these light waves out of the sphere is key to achieving high extraction efficiency. By tuning the thickness of PS layer, both of the in-coupling efficiency and out-coupling efficiency are optimized for achieving high light extraction efficiency. Thicker PS layer results in higher in-coupling efficiency in sphere while the thinner PS layer leads to higher out-coupling efficiency. Thus the maximum light extraction is a trade-off between the in-coupling efficiency and out-coupling efficiency. The study shows that light extraction efficiency of 89% can be achieved by embedding 0.90 μm TiO 2 sphere in 0.30 μm PS layer with optimized in-coupling efficiency, out-coupling efficiency and cavity effect. (paper)

Structural and optical properties of germanium nanostructures on Si(100 and embedded in high-k oxides

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ray Samit

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract The structural and optical properties of Ge quantum dots (QDs grown on Si(001 for mid-infrared photodetector and Ge nanocrystals embedded in oxide matrices for floating gate memory devices are presented. The infrared photoluminescence (PL signal from Ge islands has been studied at a low temperature. The temperature- and bias-dependent photocurrent spectra of a capped Si/SiGe/Si(001 QDs infrared photodetector device are presented. The properties of Ge nanocrystals of different size and density embedded in high-k matrices grown using radio frequency magnetron sputtering have been studied. Transmission electron micrographs have revealed the formation of isolated spherical Ge nanocrystals in high-k oxide matrix of sizes ranging from 4 to 18 nm. Embedded nanocrystals in high band gap oxides have been found to act as discrete trapping sites for exchanging charge carriers with the conduction channel by direct tunneling that is desired for applications in floating gate memory devices.

Fabry-Perot magnonic ballistic coherent transport across ultrathin ferromagnetic lamellar bcc Ni nanostructures between Fe leads

Science.gov (United States)

Khater, A.; Saim, L.; Tigrine, R.; Ghader, D.

2018-06-01

We propose thermodynamically stable systems of ultrathin lamellar bcc Ni nanostructures between bcc Fe leads, sbnd Fe[Ni(n)]Fesbnd , based on the available literature for bcc Ni overlayers on Fe(001) surfaces, and establish the necessary criteria for their structural and ferromagnetic order, for thicknesses n ≤ 6 bcc Ni monatomic layers. The system is globally ferromagnetic. A theoretical model is presented to investigate and understand the ballistic coherent scattering of Fe spin-waves, incident from the leads, at the ferromagnetic bcc Ni nanostructure. The Nisbnd Ni and Nisbnd Fe exchange are computed using the Ising effective field theory (EFT), and the magnetic ground state of the system is constructed in the Heisenberg representation. We compute the spin-wave eigenmodes localized on the bcc Ni nanostructure, using the phase field matching theory (PFMT), illustrating the effects of symmetry breaking on the confinement of localized spin excitations. The reflection and transmission scattering properties of spin-waves incident from the Fe leads, across the embedded Ni nanostructures are investigated within the framework of the same PFMT methodology. A highly refined Fabry-Perot magnonic ballistic coherent transmission spectra is observed for these sbnd Fe[Ni(n)]Fesbnd systems.

Nanopolar reorientation in ferroelectric thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hubert, C.; Levy, J.; Rivkin, T. V.; Carlson, C.; Parilla, P. A.; Perkins, J. D.; Ginley, D. S.

2001-01-01

The influence of varying oxygen pressure P(O 2 ) during the growth of Ba 0.4 Sr 0.6 TiO 3 thin films is investigated using dielectric and local optical probes. A transition from in-plane to out-of-plane ferroelectricity is observed with increasing P(O 2 ). Signatures of in-plane and out-of-plane ferroelectricity are identified using dielectric response and time-resolved confocal scanning optical microscopy (TRCSOM). At the crossover pressure between in-plane and out-of-plane polarization (P c =85 mTorr), TRCSOM measurements reveal a soft, highly dispersive out-of-plane polarization that reorients in plane under modest applied electric fields. At higher deposition pressures, the out-of-plane polarization is hardened and is less dispersive at microwave frequencies, and the dielectric tuning is suppressed. Nanopolar reorientation is believed to be responsible for the marked increase in dielectric tuning at P(O 2 )=P c

Fast Ferroelectric L-Band Tuner for Superconducting Cavities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hirshfield, Jay L.

2012-01-01

Design, analysis, and low-power tests are described on a ferroelectric tuner concept that could be used for controlling external coupling to RF cavities for the superconducting Energy Recovery Linac (ERL) in the electron cooler of the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL). The tuner configuration utilizes several small donut-shaped ferroelectric assemblies, which allow the design to be simpler and more flexible, as compared to previous designs. Design parameters for 704 and 1300 MHz versions of the tuner are given. Simulation results point to efficient performance that could reduce by a factor-of-ten the RF power levels required for driving superconducting cavities in the BNL ERL.

Fast Ferroelectric L-Band Tuner for Superconducting Cavities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jay L. Hirshfield

2012-07-03

Design, analysis, and low-power tests are described on a ferroelectric tuner concept that could be used for controlling external coupling to RF cavities for the superconducting Energy Recovery Linac (ERL) in the electron cooler of the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL). The tuner configuration utilizes several small donut-shaped ferroelectric assemblies, which allow the design to be simpler and more flexible, as compared to previous designs. Design parameters for 704 and 1300 MHz versions of the tuner are given. Simulation results point to efficient performance that could reduce by a factor-of-ten the RF power levels required for driving superconducting cavities in the BNL ERL.

Characterization of a Common-Source Amplifier Using Ferroelectric Transistors

Science.gov (United States)

Hunt, Mitchell; Sayyah, Rana; MacLeond, Todd C.; Ho, Pat D.

2010-01-01

This paper presents empirical data that was collected through experiments using a FeFET in the established common-source amplifier circuit. The unique behavior of the FeFET lends itself to interesting and useful operation in this widely used common-source amplifier. The paper examines the effect of using a ferroelectric transistor for the amplifier. It also examines the effects of varying load resistance, biasing, and input voltages on the output signal and gives several examples of the output of the amplifier for a given input. The difference between a commonsource amplifier using a ferroelectric transistor and that using a MOSFET is addressed.

Multiferroic tunnel junctions and ferroelectric control of magnetic state at interface (invited)

KAUST Repository

Yin, Y. W.

2015-03-03

As semiconductor devices reach ever smaller dimensions, the challenge of power dissipation and quantum effect place a serious limit on the future device scaling. Recently, a multiferroic tunnel junction (MFTJ) with a ferroelectric barrier sandwiched between two ferromagnetic electrodes has drawn enormous interest due to its potential applications not only in multi-level data storage but also in electric field controlled spintronics and nanoferronics. Here, we present our investigations on four-level resistance states, giant tunneling electroresistance (TER) due to interfacial magnetoelectric coupling, and ferroelectric control of spin polarized tunneling in MFTJs. Coexistence of large tunneling magnetoresistance and TER has been observed in manganite/(Ba, Sr)TiO3/manganite MFTJs at low temperatures and room temperature four-resistance state devices were also obtained. To enhance the TER for potential logic operation with a magnetic memory, La0.7Sr0.3MnO3/BaTiO3/La0.5Ca0.5MnO3 /La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 MFTJs were designed by utilizing a bilayer tunneling barrier in which BaTiO3 is ferroelectric and La0.5Ca0.5MnO3 is close to ferromagnetic metal to antiferromagnetic insulator phase transition. The phase transition occurs when the ferroelectric polarization is reversed, resulting in an increase of TER by two orders of magnitude. Tunneling magnetoresistance can also be controlled by the ferroelectric polarization reversal, indicating strong magnetoelectric coupling at the interface.

Modified wound dressing with phyto-nanostructured coating to prevent staphylococcal and pseudomonal biofilm development

OpenAIRE

Anghel, Ion; Holban, Alina Maria; Grumezescu, Alexandru Mihai; Andronescu, Ecaterina; Ficai, Anton; Anghel, Alina Georgiana; Maganu, Maria; Laz?r, Veronica; Chifiriuc, Mariana Carmen

2012-01-01

This paper reports a newly fabricated nanophyto-modified wound dressing with microbicidal and anti-adherence properties. Nanofluid-based magnetite doped with eugenol or limonene was used to fabricate modified wound dressings. Nanostructure coated materials were characterized by TEM, XRD, and FT-IR. For the quantitative measurement of biofilm-embedded microbial cells, a culture-based method for viable cell count was used. The optimized textile dressing samples proved to be more resistant to st...

X-ray diffraction stress analysis of ferroelectric thin films with ideal (h k l) textures considering the piezoelectric coupling effect

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu Huaping; Wu Linzhi; Li Jiquan; Chai Guozhong; Du Shanyi

2010-01-01

Ferroelectric thin films present large residual stress and strong texture during preparation, which affect the mechanical, dielectric and piezoelectric properties of the thin films. The determination of residual stresses in ferroelectric thin films with different textures is therefore very important. In this paper, an extended crystallite group model to evaluate the residual stresses of ferroelectric thin films using X-ray diffraction is proposed by considering the constitutive equation of orthogonally anisotropic ferroelectric medium. The effects of anisotropy and piezoelectric coupling on residual stresses of ferroelectric thin films are analyzed. X-ray stress factors for ideal (h k l)-textured ferroelectric thin films are obtained. An example of calculating the residual stresses of tetragonal perovskite ferroelectric thin films with (1 1 1) and (1 0 0) textures using the extended model is provided to validate the model.

Acoustic emission during the ferroelectric transition Pm3{sup ¯}m to P4mm in BaTiO{sub 3} and the ferroelastic transition R3{sup ¯}m-C2/c in Pb{sub 3}(PO{sub 4}){sub 2}

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Salje, E. K. H. [Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EQ (United Kingdom); Dul' kin, E.; Roth, M. [Department of Applied Physics, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91904 (Israel)

2015-04-13

Acoustic emission (AE) spectroscopy without frequency filtering (∼broadband AE) and moderate time integration is shown to be sensitive enough to allow the investigation of subtle nano-structural changes in ferroelectric BaTiO{sub 3} and ferroelastic Pb{sub 3}(PO{sub 4}){sub 2}. AE signals during weak phase transitions are compatible with avalanche statistics as observed previously in large-strain systems. While the data are too sparse to determine avalanche exponents, they are well suited to determine other thermodynamic parameters such as transition temperatures and critical stresses.

Acoustic Imaging Frequency Dynamics of Ferroelectric Domains by Atomic Force Microscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kun-Yu, Zhao; Hua-Rong, Zeng; Hong-Zhang, Song; Sen-Xing, Hui; Guo-Rong, Li; Qing-Rui, Yin; Shimamura, Kiyoshi; Kannan, Chinna Venkadasamy; Villora, Encarnacion Antonia Garcia; Takekawa, Shunji; Kitamura, Kenji

2008-01-01

We report the acoustic imaging frequency dynamics of ferroelectric domains by low-frequency acoustic probe microscopy based on the commercial atomic force microscopy It is found that ferroelectric domain could be firstly visualized at lower frequency down to 0.5 kHz by AFM-based acoustic microscopy The frequency-dependent acoustic signal revealed a strong acoustic response in the frequency range from 7kHz to 10kHz, and reached maximum at 8.1kHz. The acoustic contrast mechanism can be ascribed to the different elastic response of ferroelectric microstructures to local elastic stress fields, which is induced by the acoustic wave transmitting in the sample when the piezoelectric transducer is vibrating and exciting acoustic wave under ac electric fields due to normal piezoelectric effects. (condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties)

Ferroelectricity down to at least 2 nm in multiferroic BiFeO3 epitaxial thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bea, H.; Fusil, S.; Bouzehouane, K.; Sirena, M.; Herranz, G.; Jacquet, E.; Contour, J.-P.; Barthelemy, A.; Bibes, M.

2006-01-01

We report here on the preservation of ferroelectricity down to 2 nm in BiFeO 3 ultrathin films. The electric polarization can be switched reversibly and is stable over several days. Our findings insight on the fundamental problem of ferroelectricity at low thickness and confirm the potential of BiFeO 3 as a lead-free ferroelectric and multiferroic material for nanoscale devices. (author)

Tunable Injection Barrier in Organic Resistive Switches Based on Phase-Separated Ferroelectric-Semiconductor Blends

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Asadi, Kamal; de Boer, Tom G.; Blom, Paul W. M.; de Leeuw, Dago M.

2009-01-01

Organic non-volatile resistive bistable diodes based on phase-separated blends of ferroelectric and semiconducting polymers are fabricated. The polarization field of the ferroelectric modulates the injection barrier at the semiconductor-electrode contact and, hence, the resistance of the comprising

Tunable injection barrier in organic resistive switches based on phase-separated ferroelectric-semiconductor blends

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Asadi, K.; Boer, T.G. de; Blom, P.W.M.; Leeuw, D.M. de

2009-01-01

Organic non-volatile resistive bistable diodes based on phase-separated blends of ferroelectric and semiconducting polymers are fabricated. The polarization field of the ferroelectric modulates the injection barrier at the semiconductor-electrode contact and, hence, the resistance of the comprising

First principles study of CaTIO3 crystal in paraelectric and ferroelectric phases

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hashemi, H.; Kompany, A.; Hosseini, M.

2005-01-01

Electronic properties of CaTiO 3 crystal in paraelectric and ferroelectric phases have been studied by first principles, using Hohenberg-kohn-sham density functional theory. In paraelectric phase the results show an indirect band gap of about at 2eV at Γ-R direction in the Brillouin zone and a strong hybridization between Ti-3d an O-2P orbital. In ferroelectric phase a direct band gap of about 1 eV is seen at ***Γ point. Up to our knowledge no data has been reported on the ferroelectric phase so far, therefore our results might be useful for the future works

Development of “fragility” in relaxor ferroelectrics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Yi-zhen, E-mail: wangyizhen80@gmail.com [College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158 (China); Bioengineering Program and Mechanical Engineering and Mechanics Department, Lehigh University, 19 Memorial Drive West, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18015 (United States); State Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials and Technologies, School of Physics and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275 (China); Chen, Lan; Xiong, Xiao-min; Zhang, Jin-xiu [State Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials and Technologies, School of Physics and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275 (China); Wang, Hai-yan [State Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials and Technologies, School of Physics and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275 (China); Guangzhou Institute of Measurement and Testing Technology, Guangzhou 510663 (China); Frank Zhang, X. [Bioengineering Program and Mechanical Engineering and Mechanics Department, Lehigh University, 19 Memorial Drive West, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18015 (United States); Fu, Jun [College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158 (China)

2014-02-07

Relaxor ferroelectrics (RFs), a special class of the disordered crystals or ceramics, exhibit a pronounced slowdown of their dynamics upon cooling as glass-forming liquids, called the “Super-Arrhenius (SA)” relaxation. Despite great progress in glass-forming liquids, the “fragility” property of the SA relaxation in RFs remains unclear so far. By measuring the temperature-dependent dielectric relaxation in the typical relaxor Pb(Mg{sub 1/3}Nb{sub 2/3})O{sub 3}-x%PbTiO{sub 3} (PMN − x%PT) with 0 ≤ x ≤ 20.0, we in-depth study the “fragility” properties of the SA relaxation in PMN − x%PT. Such fascinating issues as the mechanism of the “fragility” at an atomic scale, the roles of the systematic configurational entropy change and interaction among relaxing units (RUs, including polar nanoregions and free dipoles) and the relation between “fragility” and ferroelectric order are investigated. Our results show that both the “fragility” of the temperature-dependent SA relaxation and ferroelectric order in the PMN − x%PT systems investigated arise thermodynamically from the configurational-entropy loss due to the attractive interaction among RUs, and develops as a power law, possibly diverging at the finite critical temperature T{sub c}. A reasonable physical scenario, based on our “configurational-entropy-loss” theory and Nowick's “stress-induced-ordering” theory, was proposed.

Development of “fragility” in relaxor ferroelectrics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Yi-zhen; Chen, Lan; Xiong, Xiao-min; Zhang, Jin-xiu; Wang, Hai-yan; Frank Zhang, X.; Fu, Jun

2014-01-01

Relaxor ferroelectrics (RFs), a special class of the disordered crystals or ceramics, exhibit a pronounced slowdown of their dynamics upon cooling as glass-forming liquids, called the “Super-Arrhenius (SA)” relaxation. Despite great progress in glass-forming liquids, the “fragility” property of the SA relaxation in RFs remains unclear so far. By measuring the temperature-dependent dielectric relaxation in the typical relaxor Pb(Mg 1/3 Nb 2/3 )O 3 -x%PbTiO 3 (PMN − x%PT) with 0 ≤ x ≤ 20.0, we in-depth study the “fragility” properties of the SA relaxation in PMN − x%PT. Such fascinating issues as the mechanism of the “fragility” at an atomic scale, the roles of the systematic configurational entropy change and interaction among relaxing units (RUs, including polar nanoregions and free dipoles) and the relation between “fragility” and ferroelectric order are investigated. Our results show that both the “fragility” of the temperature-dependent SA relaxation and ferroelectric order in the PMN − x%PT systems investigated arise thermodynamically from the configurational-entropy loss due to the attractive interaction among RUs, and develops as a power law, possibly diverging at the finite critical temperature T c . A reasonable physical scenario, based on our “configurational-entropy-loss” theory and Nowick's “stress-induced-ordering” theory, was proposed

Systematic prediction of new ferroelectric inorganic materials in point group 6

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abrahams, S.C.

1990-01-01

A total of seven new families and sixteen structurally different inorganic materials with point group 6 are shown to satisfy the criteria presented previously by the present author for predicting ferroelectricity. In case each prediction is experimentally verified, the 183 individual entries for point group 6 listed in the Inorganic Crystal Structure Database will result in over 80 new ferroelectrics, of which about 30 are rare-earth isomorphs. The total number of 'pure'

Integration of first-principles methods and crystallographic database searches for new ferroelectrics: Strategies and explorations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bennett, Joseph W.; Rabe, Karin M.

2012-01-01

In this concept paper, the development of strategies for the integration of first-principles methods with crystallographic database mining for the discovery and design of novel ferroelectric materials is discussed, drawing on the results and experience derived from exploratory investigations on three different systems: (1) the double perovskite Sr(Sb 1/2 Mn 1/2 )O 3 as a candidate semiconducting ferroelectric; (2) polar derivatives of schafarzikite MSb 2 O 4 ; and (3) ferroelectric semiconductors with formula M 2 P 2 (S,Se) 6 . A variety of avenues for further research and investigation are suggested, including automated structure type classification, low-symmetry improper ferroelectrics, and high-throughput first-principles searches for additional representatives of structural families with desirable functional properties. - Graphical abstract: Integration of first-principles methods with crystallographic database mining, for the discovery and design of novel ferroelectric materials, could potentially lead to new classes of multifunctional materials. Highlights: ► Integration of first-principles methods and database mining. ► Minor structural families with desirable functional properties. ► Survey of polar entries in the Inorganic Crystal Structural Database.

Surface modification of cadmium sulfide thin film honey comb nanostructures: Effect of in situ tin doping using chemical bath deposition

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wilson, K.C., E-mail: wilsonphy@gmail.com [Department of Physics, Govt. Polytechnic College Kothamangalam, Chelad P O, Ernakulam, Kerala 686681 (India); Department of Physics, B. S. Abdur Rahman University, Vandaloor, Chennai, Tamilnadu 600048 (India); Basheer Ahamed, M. [Department of Physics, B. S. Abdur Rahman University, Vandaloor, Chennai, Tamilnadu 600048 (India)

2016-01-15

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • Novel honey comb like cadmium sulfide thin film nanostructures prepared using chemical bath deposition on glass substrates. • Honey comb nanostructure found in two layers: an ultra thin film at bottom and well inter connected with walls of < 25 nm thick on top; hence maximum surface area possible for CdS nanostructure. • Shell size of the nanostructures and energy band gaps were controlled also an enhanced persistent conductivity observed on Sn doping. - Abstract: Even though nanostructures possess large surface to volume ratio compared to their thin film counterpart, the complicated procedure that demands for the deposition on a substrate kept them back foot in device fabrication techniques. In this work, a honey comb like cadmium sulfide (CdS) thin films nanostructure are deposited on glass substrates using simple chemical bath deposition technique at 65 °C. Energy band gaps, film thickness and shell size of the honey comb nanostructures are successfully controlled using tin (Sn) doping and number of shells per unit area is found to be maximum for 5% Sn doped (in the reaction mixture) sample. X-ray diffraction and optical absorption analysis showed that cadmium sulfide and cadmium hydroxide coexist in the samples. TEM measurements showed that CdS nanostructures are embedded in cadmium hydroxide just like “plum pudding”. Persistent photoconductivity measurements of the samples are also carried out. The decay constants found to be increased with increases in Sn doping.

Impact of symmetry on the ferroelectric properties of CaTiO{sub 3} thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Biegalski, Michael D.; Qiao, Liang [Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831 (United States); Gu, Yijia; Chen, Long-Qing [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16801 (United States); Mehta, Apurva [Stanford Synchrotron Lightsource SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, Menlo Park, California 94025 (United States); He, Qian; Borisevich, Albina [Materials Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831 (United States); Takamura, Yayoi, E-mail: ytakamura@ucdavis.edu [Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, University of California Davis, Davis, California 95616 (United States)

2015-04-20

Epitaxial strain is a powerful tool to induce functional properties such as ferroelectricity in thin films of materials that do not possess ferroelectricity in bulk form. In this work, a ferroelectric state was stabilized in thin films of the incipient ferroelectric, CaTiO{sub 3}, through the careful control of the biaxial strain state and TiO{sub 6} octahedral rotations. Detailed structural characterization was carried out by synchrotron x-ray diffraction and scanning transmission electron microscopy. CaTiO{sub 3} films grown on La{sub 0.18}Sr{sub 0.82}Al{sub 0.59}Ta{sub 0.41}O{sub 3} (LSAT) and NdGaO{sub 3} (NGO) substrates experienced a 1.1% biaxial strain state but differed in their octahedral tilt structures. A suppression of the out-of-plane rotations of the TiO{sub 6} octahedral in films grown on LSAT substrates resulted in a robust ferroelectric I4 mm phase with remnant polarization ∼5 μC/cm{sup 2} at 10 K and T{sub c} near 140 K. In contrast, films grown on NGO substrates with significant octahedral tilting showed reduced polarization and T{sub c}. These results highlight the key role played by symmetry in controlling the ferroelectric properties of perovskite oxide thin films.

Growth and anisotropic transport properties of self-assembled InAs nanostructures in InP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bierwagen, O.

2007-01-01

Self-assembled InAs nanostructures in InP, comprising quantum wells, quantum wires, and quantum dots, are studied in terms of their formation and properties. In particular, the structural, optical, and anisotropic transport properties of the nanostructures are investigated. The focus is a comprehending exploration of the anisotropic in-plane transport in large ensembles of laterally coupled InAs nanostructures. The self-assembled Stranski-Krastanov growth of InAs nanostructures is studied by gas-source molecular beam epitaxy on both nominally oriented and vicinal InP(001). Optical polarization of the interband transitions arising from the nanostructure type is demonstrated by photoluminescence and transmission spectroscopy. The experimentally convenient four-contact van der Pauw Hall measurement of rectangularly shaped semiconductors, usually applied to isotropic systems, is extended to yield the anisotropic transport properties. Temperature dependent transport measurements are performed in large ensembles of laterally closely spaced nanostructures. The transport of quantum wire-, quantum dash- and quantum dot containing samples is highly anisotropic with the principal axes of conductivity aligned to the directions. The direction of higher mobility is [ anti 110], which is parallel to the direction of the quantum wires. In extreme cases, the anisotropies exceed 30 for electrons, and 100 for holes. The extreme anisotropy for holes is due to diffusive transport through extended states in the [ anti 110], and hopping transport through laterally localized states in the [110] direction, within the same sample. A novel 5-terminal electronic switching device based on gate-controlled transport anisotropy is proposed. The gate-control of the transport anisotropy in modulation-doped, self-organized InAs quantum wires embedded in InP is demonstrated. (orig.)

Growth and anisotropic transport properties of self-assembled InAs nanostructures in InP

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bierwagen, O.

2007-12-20

Self-assembled InAs nanostructures in InP, comprising quantum wells, quantum wires, and quantum dots, are studied in terms of their formation and properties. In particular, the structural, optical, and anisotropic transport properties of the nanostructures are investigated. The focus is a comprehending exploration of the anisotropic in-plane transport in large ensembles of laterally coupled InAs nanostructures. The self-assembled Stranski-Krastanov growth of InAs nanostructures is studied by gas-source molecular beam epitaxy on both nominally oriented and vicinal InP(001). Optical polarization of the interband transitions arising from the nanostructure type is demonstrated by photoluminescence and transmission spectroscopy. The experimentally convenient four-contact van der Pauw Hall measurement of rectangularly shaped semiconductors, usually applied to isotropic systems, is extended to yield the anisotropic transport properties. Temperature dependent transport measurements are performed in large ensembles of laterally closely spaced nanostructures. The transport of quantum wire-, quantum dash- and quantum dot containing samples is highly anisotropic with the principal axes of conductivity aligned to the <110> directions. The direction of higher mobility is [ anti 110], which is parallel to the direction of the quantum wires. In extreme cases, the anisotropies exceed 30 for electrons, and 100 for holes. The extreme anisotropy for holes is due to diffusive transport through extended states in the [ anti 110], and hopping transport through laterally localized states in the [110] direction, within the same sample. A novel 5-terminal electronic switching device based on gate-controlled transport anisotropy is proposed. The gate-control of the transport anisotropy in modulation-doped, self-organized InAs quantum wires embedded in InP is demonstrated. (orig.)

Non-Resonant Magnetoelectric Energy Harvesting Utilizing Phase Transformation in Relaxor Ferroelectric Single Crystals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter Finkel

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Recent advances in phase transition transduction enabled the design of a non-resonant broadband mechanical energy harvester that is capable of delivering an energy density per cycle up to two orders of magnitude larger than resonant cantilever piezoelectric type generators. This was achieved in a [011] oriented and poled domain engineered relaxor ferroelectric single crystal, mechanically biased to a state just below the ferroelectric rhombohedral (FR-ferroelectric orthorhombic (FO phase transformation. Therefore, a small variation in an input parameter, e.g., electrical, mechanical, or thermal will generate a large output due to the significant polarization change associated with the transition. This idea was extended in the present work to design a non-resonant, multi-domain magnetoelectric composite hybrid harvester comprised of highly magnetostrictive alloy, [Fe81.4Ga18.6 (Galfenol or TbxDy1-xFe2 (Terfenol-D], and lead indium niobate–lead magnesium niobate–lead titanate (PIN-PMN-PT domain engineered relaxor ferroelectric single crystal. A small magnetic field applied to the coupled device causes the magnetostrictive element to expand, and the resulting stress forces the phase change in the relaxor ferroelectric single crystal. We have demonstrated high energy conversion in this magnetoelectric device by triggering the FR-FO transition in the single crystal by a small ac magnetic field in a broad frequency range that is important for multi-domain hybrid energy harvesting devices.

Ferroelectric properties of composites containing BaTiO3 nanoparticles of various sizes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adam, Jens; Lehnert, Tobias; Klein, Gabi; McMeeking, Robert M

2014-01-01

Size effects, including the occurrence of superparaelectric phases associated with small scale, are a significant research topic for ferroelectrics. Relevant phenomena have been explored in detail, e.g. for homogeneous, thin ferroelectric films, but the related effects associated with nanoparticles are usually only inferred from their structural properties. In contrast, this paper describes all the steps and concepts necessary for the direct characterization and quantitative assessment of the ferroelectric properties of as-synthesized and as-received nanoparticles. The method adopted uses electrical polarization measurements on polymer matrix composites containing ferroelectric nanoparticles. It is applied to ten different BaTiO 3 particle types covering a size range from 10 nm to 0.8 μm. The influence of variations of particle characteristics such as tetragonality and dielectric constant is considered based on measurements of these properties. For composites containing different particle types a clearly differing polarization behaviour is found. For decreasing particle size, increasing electric field is required to achieve a given level of polarization. The size dependence of a measure related to the coercive field revealed by this work is qualitatively in line with the state of the knowledge for ferroelectrics having small dimensions. For the first time, such results and size effects are described based on data from experiments on collections of actual nanoparticles. (paper)

Ferroelectric properties of composites containing BaTiO 3 nanoparticles of various sizes

Science.gov (United States)

Adam, Jens; Lehnert, Tobias; Klein, Gabi; McMeeking, Robert M.

2014-01-01

Size effects, including the occurrence of superparaelectric phases associated with small scale, are a significant research topic for ferroelectrics. Relevant phenomena have been explored in detail, e.g. for homogeneous, thin ferroelectric films, but the related effects associated with nanoparticles are usually only inferred from their structural properties. In contrast, this paper describes all the steps and concepts necessary for the direct characterization and quantitative assessment of the ferroelectric properties of as-synthesized and as-received nanoparticles. The method adopted uses electrical polarization measurements on polymer matrix composites containing ferroelectric nanoparticles. It is applied to ten different BaTiO3 particle types covering a size range from 10 nm to 0.8 μm. The influence of variations of particle characteristics such as tetragonality and dielectric constant is considered based on measurements of these properties. For composites containing different particle types a clearly differing polarization behaviour is found. For decreasing particle size, increasing electric field is required to achieve a given level of polarization. The size dependence of a measure related to the coercive field revealed by this work is qualitatively in line with the state of the knowledge for ferroelectrics having small dimensions. For the first time, such results and size effects are described based on data from experiments on collections of actual nanoparticles.

Stacking effect on the ferroelectric properties of PZT/PLZT multilayer thin films formed by photochemical metal-organic deposition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Hyeong-Ho; Park, Hyung-Ho; Hill, Ross H.

2004-01-01

The ferroelectric properties of lead zirconate titanate (PZT) and lanthanum-doped lead zirconate titanate (PLZT) multilayer films formed by photochemical metal-organic deposition (PMOD) using photosensitive precursors have been characterized. The substitution of La for Pb was reported to induce improved ferroelectric properties, especially fatigue resistance, through the reduction of oxygen vacancies. The relation between La-substitution and the ferroelectric properties was investigated by characterization of the effect of the order of stacking four ferroelectric layers of PZT or PLZT in the multilayer films 4-PZT, PZT/2-PLZT/PZT, PLZT/2-PZT/PLZT, and 4-PLZT. The films with the PLZT layer at the top and bottom showed an improvement in the fatigue resistance. It was revealed that defect dipole such as O vacancy was reduced at the ferroelectric/Pt interface by doping with La. Also, the bottom layer, just on Pt substrate had a significant influence on the surface microstructure and growth orientation of ferroelectric film

Polarization effects on spectra of spherical core/shell nanostructures: Perturbation theory against finite difference approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ibral, Asmaa; Zouitine, Asmaa; Assaid, El Mahdi

2015-01-01

Poisson equation is solved analytically in the case of a point charge placed anywhere in a spherical core/shell nanostructure, immersed in aqueous or organic solution or embedded in semiconducting or insulating matrix. Conduction and valence band-edge alignments between core and shell are described by finite height barriers. Influence of polarization charges induced at the surfaces where two adjacent materials meet is taken into account. Original expressions of electrostatic potential created everywhere in the space by a source point charge are derived. Expressions of self-polarization potential describing the interaction of a point charge with its own image–charge are deduced. Contributions of double dielectric constant mismatch to electron and hole ground state energies as well as nanostructure effective gap are calculated via first order perturbation theory and also by finite difference approach. Dependencies of electron, hole and gap energies against core to shell radii ratio are determined in the case of ZnS/CdSe core/shell nanostructure immersed in water or in toluene. It appears that finite difference approach is more efficient than first order perturbation method and that the effect of polarization charge may in no case be neglected as its contribution can reach a significant proportion of the value of nanostructure gap

Polarization effects on spectra of spherical core/shell nanostructures: Perturbation theory against finite difference approach

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ibral, Asmaa [Equipe d' Optique et Electronique du Solide, Département de Physique, Faculté des Sciences, Université Chouaïb Doukkali, B. P. 20 El Jadida principale, El Jadida, Royaume du Maroc (Morocco); Laboratoire d' Instrumentation, Mesure et Contrôle, Département de Physique, Faculté des Sciences, Université Chouaïb Doukkali, B. P. 20 El Jadida principale, El Jadida, Royaume du Maroc (Morocco); Zouitine, Asmaa [Département de Physique, Ecole Nationale Supérieure d' Enseignement Technique, Université Mohammed V Souissi, B. P. 6207 Rabat-Instituts, Rabat, Royaume du Maroc (Morocco); Assaid, El Mahdi, E-mail: eassaid@yahoo.fr [Equipe d' Optique et Electronique du Solide, Département de Physique, Faculté des Sciences, Université Chouaïb Doukkali, B. P. 20 El Jadida principale, El Jadida, Royaume du Maroc (Morocco); Laboratoire d' Instrumentation, Mesure et Contrôle, Département de Physique, Faculté des Sciences, Université Chouaïb Doukkali, B. P. 20 El Jadida principale, El Jadida, Royaume du Maroc (Morocco); and others

2015-02-01

Poisson equation is solved analytically in the case of a point charge placed anywhere in a spherical core/shell nanostructure, immersed in aqueous or organic solution or embedded in semiconducting or insulating matrix. Conduction and valence band-edge alignments between core and shell are described by finite height barriers. Influence of polarization charges induced at the surfaces where two adjacent materials meet is taken into account. Original expressions of electrostatic potential created everywhere in the space by a source point charge are derived. Expressions of self-polarization potential describing the interaction of a point charge with its own image–charge are deduced. Contributions of double dielectric constant mismatch to electron and hole ground state energies as well as nanostructure effective gap are calculated via first order perturbation theory and also by finite difference approach. Dependencies of electron, hole and gap energies against core to shell radii ratio are determined in the case of ZnS/CdSe core/shell nanostructure immersed in water or in toluene. It appears that finite difference approach is more efficient than first order perturbation method and that the effect of polarization charge may in no case be neglected as its contribution can reach a significant proportion of the value of nanostructure gap.

Graphene-based hybrid structures combined with functional materials of ferroelectrics and semiconductors.

Science.gov (United States)

Jie, Wenjing; Hao, Jianhua

2014-06-21

Fundamental studies and applications of 2-dimensional (2D) graphene may be deepened and broadened via combining graphene sheets with various functional materials, which have been extended from the traditional insulator of SiO2 to a versatile range of dielectrics, semiconductors and metals, as well as organic compounds. Among them, ferroelectric materials have received much attention due to their unique ferroelectric polarization. As a result, many attractive characteristics can be shown in graphene/ferroelectric hybrid systems. On the other hand, graphene can be integrated with conventional semiconductors and some newly-discovered 2D layered materials to form distinct Schottky junctions, yielding fascinating behaviours and exhibiting the potential for various applications in future functional devices. This review article is an attempt to illustrate the most recent progress in the fabrication, operation principle, characterization, and promising applications of graphene-based hybrid structures combined with various functional materials, ranging from ferroelectrics to semiconductors. We focus on mechanically exfoliated and chemical-vapor-deposited graphene sheets integrated in numerous advanced devices. Some typical hybrid structures have been highlighted, aiming at potential applications in non-volatile memories, transparent flexible electrodes, solar cells, photodetectors, and so on.

In situ transmission electron microscopy study of the microstructural origins for the electric field-induced phenomena in ferroelectric perovskites

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Guo, Hanzheng [Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States)

2014-12-15

Ferroelectrics are important materials due to their extensive technological applications, such as non-volatile memories, field-effect transistors, ferroelectric tunneling junctions, dielectric capacitors, piezoelectric transducers, sensors and actuators. As is well known, the outstanding dielectric, piezoelectric, and ferroelectric properties of these functional oxides originate from their ferroelectric domain arrangements and the corresponding evolution under external stimuli (e.g. electric field, stress, and temperature). Electric field has been known as the most efficient stimulus to manipulate the ferroelectric domains through polarization switching and alignment. Therefore, direct observation of the dynamic process of electric field-induced domain evolution and crystal structure transformation is of significant importance to understand the microstructural mechanisms for the functional properties of ferroelectrics. In this dissertation, electric field in situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM) technique was employed to monitor the real-time evolution of the domain morphology and crystal structure during various electrical processes: (1) the initial poling process, (2) the electric field reversal process, and (3) the electrical cycling process. Two types of perovskite-structured ceramics, normal ferroelectrics and relaxor ferroelectrics, were used for this investigation. In addition to providing the microscopic insight for some wellaccepted phase transformation rules, discoveries of some new or even unexpected physical phenomena were also demonstrated.

Physical aspects of electron emission spectra shape for ferroelectrics-electrets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kolesnikov, V.V.; Kozakov, A.T.

2002-01-01

One introduces a theoretical approach establishing a link between the peculiarities of spectrum of electron emission from ferroelectrics-electrets and the behavior of potential at a specimen surface. From these points of view one analyzes physical nature of the key peculiarities in the experimental spectra. One points out strong effect of electret charge relaxation on their shape due to bifurcation (branching) of peculiarities in a spectrum. A complex shape of spectrum of electron emission from ferroelectrics-electrets results from peculiarities of distribution of electrical field and polarization along their surface [ru

Electronic ferroelectricity in carbon-based systems: from reality of organic conductors to promises of polymers and graphene nano-ribbons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kirova, Natasha; Brazovskii, Serguei

2014-01-01

Ferroelectricity is a rising demand in fundamental and applied solid state physics. Ferroelectrics are used in microelectronics as active gate materials, in capacitors, electro-optical-acoustic modulators, etc. There is a particular demand for plastic ferroelectrics, e.g. as a sensor for acoustic imaging in medicine and beyond, in shapeable capacitors, etc. Microscopic mechanisms of ferroelectric polarization in traditional materials are typically ionic. In this talk we discuss the electronic ferroelectrics – carbon-based materials: organic crystals, conducting polymers and graphene nano-ribbons. The motion of walls, separating domains with opposite electric polarisation, can be influenced and manipulated by terahertz and infra-red range optics

History and the future perspective of the ferroelectric memory; Kyoyudentai memory no rekishiteki haikei to tenbo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tarui, Y [Waseda University, Tokyo (Japan)

1998-10-01

Development work is in progress on ferroelectric memory. The memory is a most suitable non-volatile memory which can be incorporated into IC cards, with its higher speed, lower voltage operation, smaller power consumption, and greater number of rewriting times than EEPROM, DRAM and SRAM. Taking as an opportunity the announcement on an experiment as performed by the authors to control semiconductor charge by using electric depolarization of ferroelectric materials, reports have been made one after another on experiments on thin metal films on TGS or BaTiO3, and experiments on semiconductor films formed on ferroelectric crystals or ceramics substrates by using vacuum deposition. In order to solve problems in ferroelectric materials, thin films of PZT and PLZT have emerged, whose good hysteresis characteristics have also been reported. Thereafter, an announcement was made on a material with bismuth layer like perovskite structure. The material is characterized with having very little film fatigue degradation after rewriting of about 10 {sup 12} times. In scaling a ferroelectric memory, if voltage is decreased in proportion with the size, the operation can be reduced proportionately according to the voltage reduction. This paper introduces a method to constitute a ferroelectric memory. 22 refs., 11 figs., 2 tabs.

Optically controlled electroresistance and electrically controlled photovoltage in ferroelectric tunnel junctions

KAUST Repository

Jin Hu, Wei; Wang, Zhihong; Yu, Weili; Wu, Tao

2016-01-01

Ferroelectric tunnel junctions (FTJs) have recently attracted considerable interest as a promising candidate for applications in the next-generation non-volatile memory technology. In this work, using an ultrathin (3 nm) ferroelectric Sm0.1Bi0.9FeO3 layer as the tunnelling barrier and a semiconducting Nb-doped SrTiO3 single crystal as the bottom electrode, we achieve a tunnelling electroresistance as large as 105. Furthermore, the FTJ memory states could be modulated by light illumination, which is accompanied by a hysteretic photovoltaic effect. These complimentary effects are attributed to the bias- and light-induced modulation of the tunnel barrier, both in height and width, at the semiconductor/ferroelectric interface. Overall, the highly tunable tunnelling electroresistance and the correlated photovoltaic functionalities provide a new route for producing and non-destructively sensing multiple non-volatile electronic states in such FTJs.

NOx Binding and Dissociation: Enhanced Ferroelectric Surface Chemistry by Catalytic Monolayers

Science.gov (United States)

Kakekhani, Arvin; Ismail-Beigi, Sohrab

2013-03-01

NOx molecules are regulated air pollutants produced during automotive combustion. As part of an effort to design viable catalysts for NOx decomposition operating at higher temperatures that would allow for improved fuel efficiency, we examine NOx chemistry on ferroelectric perovskite surfaces. Changing the direction of ferroelectric polarization can modify surface electronic properties and may lead to switchable surface chemistry. Here, we describe our recent work on potentially enhanced surface chemistry using catalytic RuO2 monolayers on perovskite ferroelectric substrates. In addition to thermodynamic stabilization of the RuO2 layer, we present results on the polarization-dependent binding of NO, O2, N2, and atomic O and N. We present results showing that one key problem with current catalysts, involving the difficulty of releasing dissociation products (especially oxygen), can be ameliorated by this method. Primary support from Toyota Motor Engineering and Manufacturing, North America, Inc.

Study of mechanically stimulated ferroelectric domain formation using scanning probe microscope

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, J H; Baek, J; Khim, Z G [School of Physics and Nano-Systems Institute, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-747 (Korea, Republic of)

2007-03-15

The stress-related ferroelectric properties have been studied on the Triglycine sulfate (TGS) by scanning probe microscope (SPM). Together with normal stress of the tip, the lateral stress is applied to the sample with piezoelectric transducers. With this study, we characterized the way the ferroelectricity of TGS responds to the axis-specific stress. Specially, the b-directional stress applicable to the surface can amount to several GPa such that the polarization switching by mechanical stress is observable. Although the lateral stress is not strong enough to view such phenomena, a-axis(c-axis) stress still affects the polarization value so as to fortify (lessen) the electric field inside, respectively. These contrasting results can be explained by the sign relation of piezo-coefficients about the individual axis. This work can be a touchstone of future researches in characterizing the electromechanical properties of more popular ferroelectrics such as PZT or BTO.

Optically controlled electroresistance and electrically controlled photovoltage in ferroelectric tunnel junctions

KAUST Repository

Jin Hu, Wei

2016-02-29

Ferroelectric tunnel junctions (FTJs) have recently attracted considerable interest as a promising candidate for applications in the next-generation non-volatile memory technology. In this work, using an ultrathin (3 nm) ferroelectric Sm0.1Bi0.9FeO3 layer as the tunnelling barrier and a semiconducting Nb-doped SrTiO3 single crystal as the bottom electrode, we achieve a tunnelling electroresistance as large as 105. Furthermore, the FTJ memory states could be modulated by light illumination, which is accompanied by a hysteretic photovoltaic effect. These complimentary effects are attributed to the bias- and light-induced modulation of the tunnel barrier, both in height and width, at the semiconductor/ferroelectric interface. Overall, the highly tunable tunnelling electroresistance and the correlated photovoltaic functionalities provide a new route for producing and non-destructively sensing multiple non-volatile electronic states in such FTJs.

Novel Photovoltaic Devices Using Ferroelectric Material and Colloidal Quantum Dots

Science.gov (United States)

Paik, Young Hun

As the global concern for the financial and environmental costs of traditional energy resources increases, research on renewable energy, most notably solar energy, has taken center stage. Many alternative photovoltaic (PV) technologies for 'the next generation solar cell' have been extensively studied to overcome the Shockley-Queisser 31% efficiency limit as well as tackle the efficiency vs. cost issues. This dissertation focuses on the novel photovoltaic mechanism for the next generation solar cells using two inorganic nanomaterials, nanocrystal quantum dots and ferroelectric nanoparticles. Lead zirconate titanate (PZT) materials are widely studied and easy to synthesize using solution based chemistry. One of the fascinating properties of the PZT material is a Bulk Photovoltaic effect (BPVE). This property has been spotlighted because it can produce very high open circuit voltage regardless of the electrical bandgap of the materials. However, the poor optical absorption of the PZT materials and the required high temperature to form the ferroelectric crystalline structure have been obstacles to fabricate efficient photovoltaic devices. Colloidal quantum dots also have fascinating optical and electrical properties such as tailored absorption spectrum, capability of the bandgap engineering due to the wide range of material selection and quantum confinement, and very efficient carrier dynamics called multiple exciton generations. In order to utilize these properties, many researchers have put numerous efforts in colloidal quantum dot photovoltaic research and there has been remarkable progress in the past decade. However, several drawbacks are still remaining to achieve highly efficient photovoltaic device. Traps created on the large surface area, low carrier mobility, and lower open circuit voltage while increasing the absorption of the solar spectrum is main issues of the nanocrystal based photovoltaic effect. To address these issues and to take the advantages of

Advanced Magnetic Nanostructures

CERN Document Server

Sellmyer, David

2006-01-01

Advanced Magnetic Nanostructures is devoted to the fabrication, characterization, experimental investigation, theoretical understanding, and utilization of advanced magnetic nanostructures. Focus is on various types of 'bottom-up' and 'top-down' artificial nanostructures, as contrasted to naturally occurring magnetic nanostructures, such as iron-oxide inclusions in magnetic rocks, and to structures such as perfect thin films. Chapter 1 is an introduction into some basic concepts, such as the definitions of basic magnetic quantities. Chapters 2-4 are devoted to the theory of magnetic nanostructures, Chapter 5 deals with the characterization of the structures, and Chapters 6-10 are devoted to specific systems. Applications of advanced magnetic nanostructures are discussed in Chapters11-15 and, finally, the appendix lists and briefly discusses magnetic properties of typical starting materials. Industrial and academic researchers in magnetism and related areas such as nanotechnology, materials science, and theore...

Fractal model of polarization switching kinetics in ferroelectrics under nonequilibrium conditions of electron irradiation

Science.gov (United States)

Maslovskaya, A. G.; Barabash, T. K.

2018-03-01

The paper presents the results of the fractal and multifractal analysis of polarization switching current in ferroelectrics under electron irradiation, which allows statistical memory effects to be estimated at dynamics of domain structure. The mathematical model of formation of electron beam-induced polarization current in ferroelectrics was suggested taking into account the fractal nature of domain structure dynamics. In order to realize the model the computational scheme was constructed using the numerical solution approximation of fractional differential equation. Evidences of electron beam-induced polarization switching process in ferroelectrics were specified at a variation of control model parameters.

TaN interface properties and electric field cycling effects on ferroelectric Si-doped HfO2 thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lomenzo, Patrick D.; Nishida, Toshikazu; Takmeel, Qanit; Zhou, Chuanzhen; Fancher, Chris M.; Jones, Jacob L.; Lambers, Eric; Rudawski, Nicholas G.; Moghaddam, Saeed

2015-01-01

Ferroelectric HfO 2 -based thin films, which can exhibit ferroelectric properties down to sub-10 nm thicknesses, are a promising candidate for emerging high density memory technologies. As the ferroelectric thickness continues to shrink, the electrode-ferroelectric interface properties play an increasingly important role. We investigate the TaN interface properties on 10 nm thick Si-doped HfO 2 thin films fabricated in a TaN metal-ferroelectric-metal stack which exhibit highly asymmetric ferroelectric characteristics. To understand the asymmetric behavior of the ferroelectric characteristics of the Si-doped HfO 2 thin films, the chemical interface properties of sputtered TaN bottom and top electrodes are probed with x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Ta-O bonds at the bottom electrode interface and a significant presence of Hf-N bonds at both electrode interfaces are identified. It is shown that the chemical heterogeneity of the bottom and top electrode interfaces gives rise to an internal electric field, which causes the as-grown ferroelectric domains to preferentially polarize to screen positively charged oxygen vacancies aggregated at the oxidized bottom electrode interface. Electric field cycling is shown to reduce the internal electric field with a concomitant increase in remanent polarization and decrease in relative permittivity. Through an analysis of pulsed transient switching currents, back-switching is observed in Si-doped HfO 2 thin films with pinched hysteresis loops and is shown to be influenced by the internal electric field

Self-Assembly of Organic Ferroelectrics by Evaporative Dewetting: A Case of β-Glycine.

Science.gov (United States)

Seyedhosseini, Ensieh; Romanyuk, Konstantin; Vasileva, Daria; Vasilev, Semen; Nuraeva, Alla; Zelenovskiy, Pavel; Ivanov, Maxim; Morozovska, Anna N; Shur, Vladimir Ya; Lu, Haidong; Gruverman, Alexei; Kholkin, Andrei L

2017-06-14

Self-assembly of ferroelectric materials attracts significant interest because it offers a promising fabrication route to novel structures useful for microelectronic devices such as nonvolatile memories, integrated sensors/actuators, or energy harvesters. In this work, we demonstrate a novel approach for self-assembly of organic ferroelectrics (as exemplified by ferroelectric β-glycine) using evaporative dewetting, which allows forming quasi-regular arrays of nano- and microislands with preferred orientation of polarization axes. Surprisingly, self-assembled islands are crystallographically oriented in a radial direction from the center of organic "grains" formed during dewetting process. The kinetics of dewetting process follows the t -1/2 law, which is responsible for the observed polygon shape of the grain boundaries and island coverage as a function of radial position. The polarization in ferroelectric islands of β-glycine is parallel to the substrate and switchable under a relatively small dc voltage applied by the conducting tip of piezoresponse force microscope. Significant size effect on polarization is observed and explained within the Landau-Ginzburg-Devonshire phenomenological formalism.

Kinetics of Domain Switching by Mechanical and Electrical Stimulation in Relaxor-Based Ferroelectrics

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Zibin; Hong, Liang; Wang, Feifei; An, Xianghai; Wang, Xiaolin; Ringer, Simon; Chen, Long-Qing; Luo, Haosu; Liao, Xiaozhou

2017-12-01

Ferroelectric materials have been extensively explored for applications in high-density nonvolatile memory devices because of their ferroelectric-ferroelastic domain-switching behavior under electric loading or mechanical stress. However, the existence of ferroelectric and ferroelastic backswitching would cause significant data loss, which affects the reliability of data storage. Here, we apply in situ transmission electron microscopy and phase-field modeling to explore the unique ferroelastic domain-switching kinetics and the origin of this in relaxor-based Pb (Mg1 /3Nb2 /3)O3-33 % PbTiO3 single-crystal pillars under electrical and mechanical stimulations. Results showed that the electric-mechanical hysteresis loop shifted for relaxor-based single-crystal pillars because of the low energy levels of domains in the material and the constraint on the pillars, resulting in various mechanically reversible and irreversible domain-switching states. The phenomenon can potentially be used for advanced bit writing and reading in nonvolatile memories, which effectively overcomes the backswitching problem and broadens the types of ferroelectric materials for nonvolatile memory applications.

Mechanical Properties of Nanostructured Materials Determined Through Molecular Modeling Techniques

Science.gov (United States)

Clancy, Thomas C.; Gates, Thomas S.

2005-01-01

The potential for gains in material properties over conventional materials has motivated an effort to develop novel nanostructured materials for aerospace applications. These novel materials typically consist of a polymer matrix reinforced with particles on the nanometer length scale. In this study, molecular modeling is used to construct fully atomistic models of a carbon nanotube embedded in an epoxy polymer matrix. Functionalization of the nanotube which consists of the introduction of direct chemical bonding between the polymer matrix and the nanotube, hence providing a load transfer mechanism, is systematically varied. The relative effectiveness of functionalization in a nanostructured material may depend on a variety of factors related to the details of the chemical bonding and the polymer structure at the nanotube-polymer interface. The objective of this modeling is to determine what influence the details of functionalization of the carbon nanotube with the polymer matrix has on the resulting mechanical properties. By considering a range of degree of functionalization, the structure-property relationships of these materials is examined and mechanical properties of these models are calculated using standard techniques.

Data retention in organic ferroelectric resistive switches

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Khikhlovskyi, V.; Breemen, A.J.J.M. van; Janssen, R.A.J.; Gelinck, G.H.; Kemerink, M.

2016-01-01

Solution-processed organic ferroelectric resistive switches could become the long-missing non-volatile memory elements in organic electronic devices. To this end, data retention in these devices should be characterized, understood and controlled. First, it is shown that the measurement protocol can

Low-loss microelectrodes fabricated using reverse-side exposure for a tunable ferroelectric capacitor application

Science.gov (United States)

Yoon, Yong-Kyu; Stevenson Kenney, J.; Hunt, Andrew T.; Allen, Mark G.

2006-02-01

Narrowly spaced thick microelectrodes are fabricated using a self-aligned multiple reverse-side exposure scheme for an improved quality-factor tunable ferroelectric capacitor. The microelectrodes are fabricated on a functional substrate—a thin film ferroelectric (barium strontium titanate, BST; BaxSr1-xTiO3) coated sapphire substrate, which has an electric-field-dependent dielectric property providing tuning functionality, as well as UV transparency permitting an additional degree of freedom in photolithography steps. The microelectrode process has been applied to interdigitated capacitor fabrication, where a critical challenge is maintaining narrow gaps between electrodes for high tunability, while simultaneously forming thick electrodes to minimize conductor loss. A single mask, self-aligned reverse-side exposure through the transparent substrate achieves both these goals. A single-finger test capacitor with an electrode gap of 1.2 µm and an electrode thickness of 2.2 µm is fabricated and characterized. Tunability (T = 100 × (C0 - Cbias)/C0) of 33% at 10 V has been achieved at 100 kHz. The 2.2 µm thick structure shows improvement of Q-factor compared to that of a 0.1 µm thick structure. To demonstrate the scalability of this process, a 102-finger interdigitated capacitor is fabricated and characterized at 100 kHz and 1 GHz. The structure is embedded in a 25 µm thick epoxy resin SU-8 for passivation. A quality factor decrease of 15-25%, tunability decrease of 2-3% and capacitance increase of 6% are observed due to the expoxy resin after passivation. High frequency performance of the capacitor has been measured to be 15.9 pF of capacitance, 28.1% tunability at 10 V and a quality factor of 16 (at a 10 V dc bias) at 1 GHz.

Ferroelectric materials for piezoelectric actuators by optimal design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jayachandran, K.P.; Guedes, J.M.; Rodrigues, H.C.

2011-01-01

Research highlights: → Microstructure optimization of ferroelectric materials by stochastic optimization. → Polycrystalline ferroelectrics possess better piezo actuation than single crystals. → Randomness of the grain orientations would enhance the overall piezoelectricity. - Abstract: Optimization methods provide a systematic means of designing heterogeneous materials with tailored properties and microstructures focussing on a specific objective. An optimization procedure incorporating a continuum modeling is used in this work to identify the ideal orientation distribution of ferroelectrics (FEs) for application in piezoelectric actuators. Piezoelectric actuation is dictated primarily by the piezoelectric strain coefficients d iμ . Crystallographic orientation is inextricably related to the piezoelectric properties of FEs. This suggests that piezoelectric properties can be tailored by a proper choice of the parameters which control the orientation distribution. Nevertheless, this choice is complicated and it is impossible to analyze all possible combinations of the distribution parameters or the angles themselves. Stochastic optimization combined with a generalized Monte Carlo scheme is used to optimize the objective functions, the effective piezoelectric coefficients d 31 and d 15 . The procedure is applied to heterogeneous, polycrystalline, FE ceramics which are essentially an aggregate of variously oriented grains (crystallites). Global piezoelectric properties are calculated using the homogenization method at each grain configuration chosen by the optimization algorithm. Optimal design variables and microstructure that would generate polycrystalline configurations that multiply the macroscopic piezoelectricity are identified.

Neutron and x-ray scattering studies of ferroelectric phase transitions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dolling, G.

1982-08-01

The subject of ferroelectric type phase transitions is introduced by means of examples of two main classes (a) displacive transitions, e.g. KNbO 3 , and (b) order-disorder transitions, e.g. NaNO 2 . The significance of crystal structure and crystal dynamics (i.e. the phonon dispersion relations) for ferroelectric behaviour is emphasized. The chief methods for structure determination are x-ray and neutron diffraction, while the most powerful of all techniques for studying phonon properties is that of coherent inelastic neutron scattering. The most useful type of neutron spectrometer for phase transition studies, the triple axis crystal spectrometer, is discussed in detail. The history of the soft mode theory of displacive phase transitions, and its application to the antiferroelectric and 'almost ferroelectric' transitions in SrTiO 3 , provides an introduction to more recent developments in this area, including over-damped soft modes, central peaks and critical scattering, incommensurate phase transitions (e.g. K 2 SeO 4 ), amplitudons, phasons and finally solitions. The treatment throughout is descriptive and introductory, designed for graduate students

Coexisting exchange bias effect and ferroelectricity in geometrically frustrated ZnCr2O4

Science.gov (United States)

Dey, J. K.; Majumdar, S.; Giri, S.

2018-06-01

Concomitant occurrence of exchange bias effect and ferroelectric order is revealed in antiferromagnetic spinel ZnCr2O4. The exchange bias effect is observed below antiferromagnetic Neél temperature (T N) with a reasonable value of exchange bias field ( Oe at 2 K). Intriguingly, the ratio is found unusually high as  ∼2.2, where H C is the coercivity. This indicates that large H C is not always primary for obtaining large exchange bias effect. Ferroelectric order is observed at T N, where non-centrosymmetric magnetic structure with space group associated with the magnetoelectric coupling correlates the ferroelectric order, proposing that, ZnCr2O4 is an improper multiferroic material. Rare occurrence of exchange bias effect and ferroelectric order in ZnCr2O4 attracts the community for fundamental interest and draws special attention in designing new materials for possible electric field control of exchange bias effect.

High T(sub c) superconductor/ferroelectric heterostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Ryder, Daniel F., Jr.

1994-12-01

Thin films of the ferroelectric perovskite, Ba(x) Sr(1-x) TiO3 (BST), were deposited on superconducting (100)YBa2Cu3O(x)(YBCO)/ (100)Yttria-stabilized zirconia(YSZ) substrates and (100)Si by ion-beam sputtering. Microstructural and compositional features of the ceramic bilayer were assessed by a combination of x-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy. The films were smooth and featureless, and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDX) data indicated that film composition closely matched target composition. XRD analysis showed that films deposited on YBCO substrates were highly c-axis textured, while the films deposited on (100)Si did not exhibit any preferred growth morphology. The superconducting properties of the YBCO substrate layer were maintained throughout the processing stages and, as such, it was demonstrated that ion beam sputtering is a viable method for the deposition of Ferroelectric/YBCO heterostructures.

Electric and ferroelectric properties of PZT/BLT multilayer films prepared by photochemical metal-organic deposition

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Hyeong-Ho; Lee, Hong-Sub; Park, Hyung-Ho; Hill, Ross H.; Hwang, Yun Taek

2009-01-01

The electric and ferroelectric properties of lead zirconate titanate (PZT) and lanthanum-substituted bismuth titanate (BLT) multilayer films prepared using photosensitive precursors were characterized. The electric and ferroelectric properties were investigated by studying the effect of the stacking order of four ferroelectric layers of PZT or BLT in 4-PZT, PZT/2-BLT/PZT, BLT/2-PZT/BLT, and 4-BLT multilayer films. The remnant polarization values of the 4-BLT and BLT/2-PZT/BLT multilayer films were 12 and 17 μC/cm 2, respectively. Improved ferroelectric properties of the PZT/BLT multilayer films were obtained by using a PZT intermediate layer. The films which contained a BLT layer on the Pt substrate had improved leakage currents of approximately two orders of magnitude and enhanced fatigue resistances compared to the films with a PZT layer on the Pt substrate. These improvements are due to the reduced number of defects and space charges near the Pt electrodes. The PZT/BLT multilayer films prepared by photochemical metal-organic deposition (PMOD) possessed enhanced electric and ferroelectric properties, and allow direct patterning to fabricate micro-patterned systems without dry etching.

Electric and ferroelectric properties of PZT/BLT multilayer films prepared by photochemical metal-organic deposition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Hyeong-Ho; Lee, Hong-Sub; Park, Hyung-Ho; Hill, Ross H.; Hwang, Yun Taek

2009-01-01

The electric and ferroelectric properties of lead zirconate titanate (PZT) and lanthanum-substituted bismuth titanate (BLT) multilayer films prepared using photosensitive precursors were characterized. The electric and ferroelectric properties were investigated by studying the effect of the stacking order of four ferroelectric layers of PZT or BLT in 4-PZT, PZT/2-BLT/PZT, BLT/2-PZT/BLT, and 4-BLT multilayer films. The remnant polarization values of the 4-BLT and BLT/2-PZT/BLT multilayer films were 12 and 17 μC/cm 2 , respectively. Improved ferroelectric properties of the PZT/BLT multilayer films were obtained by using a PZT intermediate layer. The films which contained a BLT layer on the Pt substrate had improved leakage currents of approximately two orders of magnitude and enhanced fatigue resistances compared to the films with a PZT layer on the Pt substrate. These improvements are due to the reduced number of defects and space charges near the Pt electrodes. The PZT/BLT multilayer films prepared by photochemical metal-organic deposition (PMOD) possessed enhanced electric and ferroelectric properties, and allow direct patterning to fabricate micro-patterned systems without dry etching.

Thermoelectric properties of PbSe₀.₅Te₀.₅: x (PbI₂) with endotaxial nanostructures: a promising n-type thermoelectric material.

Science.gov (United States)

Rawat, P K; Paul, B; Banerji, P

2013-05-31

In the present investigation, we report on the thermoelectric properties of PbSe₀.₅Te₀.₅: x (PbI₂) from room temperature to 625 K. High-resolution transmission electron micrographs of the samples reveal endotaxial nanostructures embedded in a PbSe₀.₅Te₀.₅ matrix. The combined effect of mass fluctuation and nanostructures reduces the thermal conductivity to a great extent compared to PbTe and PbSe, without affecting the carrier mobility. As a result, a thermoelectric figure of merit with a value of 1.5 is achieved at 625 K. This value is significantly higher than that of the available state-of-the-art n-type materials.

Concept of rewritable organic ferroelectric random access memory in two lateral transistors-in-one cell architecture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Min-Hoi; Lee, Gyu Jeong; Keum, Chang-Min; Lee, Sin-Doo

2014-01-01

We propose a concept of rewritable ferroelectric random access memory (RAM) with two lateral organic transistors-in-one cell architecture. Lateral integration of a paraelectric organic field-effect transistor (OFET), being a selection transistor, and a ferroelectric OFET as a memory transistor is realized using a paraelectric depolarizing layer (PDL) which is patterned on a ferroelectric insulator by transfer-printing. For the selection transistor, the key roles of the PDL are to reduce the dipolar strength and the surface roughness of the gate insulator, leading to the low memory on–off ratio and the high switching on–off current ratio. A new driving scheme preventing the crosstalk between adjacent memory cells is also demonstrated for the rewritable operation of the ferroelectric RAM. (paper)

Embedded scattering eigenstates using resonant metasurfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Krasnok, Alex; Alú, Andrea

2018-06-01

Optical embedded eigenstates (EEs) are localized modes of an open structure that are compatible to radiation, yet they have infinite lifetime and diverging quality factors. Their realization in nanostructures finite in all dimensions is inherently challenging, because they require materials with extreme electromagnetic properties. Here we explore the realization of these bound states in the continuum using ultrathin metasurfaces composed of arrays of nanoparticles. We first show that arrays of lossless nanoparticles can realize the condition for EEs, and then explore the use of Ag nanoparticles coated with gain media shells to compensate material loss and revive the EE despite realistic loss in plasmonic materials. We discuss the possible experimental realization of the proposed structures, and provide useful guidelines for practical implementation in nanophotonics systems with largely enhanced light–matter interactions. These metasurfaces may lead to highly efficient lasers, filters, frequency comb generation and sensors.

Self-patterning of arrays of ferroelectric capacitors: description by theory of substrate mediated strain interactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dawber, M; Szafraniak, I; Alexe, M; Scott, J F

2003-01-01

Self-patterning presents an appealing alternative to lithography for the production of arrays of nanoscale ferroelectric capacitors for use in high density non-volatile memory devices. However current levels of registration achieved experimentally are far from adequate for this application. To provide a guide for experiment we have applied the theories developed for self-patterning of semiconductor nanocrystals to two self-patterning systems of potential interest for ferroelectric memory applications, metallic bismuth oxide on bismuth titanate and ferroelectric lead zirconate titanate on strontium titanate. (letter to the editor)

A Temperature-Dependent Hysteresis Model for Relaxor Ferroelectric Compounds

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Raye, Julie K; Smith, Ralph C

2004-01-01

This paper summarizes the development of a homogenized free energy model which characterizes the temperature-dependent hysteresis and constitutive nonlinearities inherent to relaxor ferroelectric materials...

Microscopic observation of ferroelectric domains in SrTiO3 using birefringence imaging techniques under high electric fields

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Manaka, Hirotaka; Nozaki, Hirofumi; Miura, Yoko

2017-01-01

Phase transitions in SrTiO 3 between quantum paraelectric, coherent paraelectric, and electric-field-induced ferroelectric states are governed by tetragonal domains with quantum fluctuations. However, their characteristics are still unclear. To observe the electric-field-induced ferroelectric state using birefringence imaging techniques, we developed a suitable sample holder to apply high electric fields of up to E ≃ 5 kV/cm and temperatures down to T = 20 K. From birefringence imaging measurements of the ferroelectric LiNbO 3 with varying electric field, distributions of the electric field in the sample stage were found to be negligible. In SrTiO 3 , a huge-retardance area corresponding to the ferroelectric domains appears at E > 2 kV/cm and T ≤ 60 K even though the paraelectric domains partially remain. Furthermore, the fast-axis direction rotates by 90° at the ferroelectric phase transition because of an electrostrictive effect in ferroelectrics. The phase diagram of the critical electric field and temperature agrees with previous reports obtained from dielectric and neutron scattering measurements. (author)

A general analytical equation for phase diagrams of an N-layer ferroelectric thin film with two surface layers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lu, Z X; Teng, B H; Rong, Y H; Lu, X H; Yang, X [School of Physical Electronics, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610054 (China)], E-mail: phytbh@163.com

2010-03-15

Within the framework of effective-field theory with correlations, the phase diagrams of an N-layer ferroelectric thin film with two surface layers are studied by the differential operator technique based on the spin-1/2 transverse Ising model. A general analytical equation for the phase diagram of a ferroelectric thin film with arbitrary layer number as well as exchange interactions and transverse fields is derived, and then the effects of exchange interactions and transverse fields on phase diagrams are discussed for an arbitrary layer number N. Meanwhile, the crossover features, from the ferroelectric-dominant phase diagram (FPD) to the paraelectric-dominant phase diagram (PPD), for various parameters of an N-layer ferroelectric thin film with two surface layers are investigated. As a result, an N-independent common intersection point equation is obtained, and the three-dimensional curved surfaces for the crossover values are constructed. In comparison with the usual mean-field approximation, the differential operator technique with correlations reduces to some extent the ferroelectric features of a ferroelectric thin film.

Room temperature p-type conductivity and coexistence of ferroelectric order in ferromagnetic Li doped ZnO nanoparticles

KAUST Repository

Awan, Saif Ullah

2014-10-28

Memory and switching devices acquired new materials which exhibit ferroelectric and ferromagnetic order simultaneously. We reported multiferroic behavior in Zn1-yLiyO(0.00≤y≤0.10) nanoparticles. The analysis of transmission electron micrographs confirmed the hexagonal morphology and wurtzite crystalline structure. We investigated p-type conductivity in doped samples and measured hole carriers in range 2.4×1017/cc to 7.3×1017/cc for different Li contents. We found that hole carriers are responsible for long range order ferromagnetic coupling in Li doped samples. Room temperature ferroelectric hysteresis loops were observed in 8% and 10% Li doped samples. We demonstrated ferroelectric coercivity (remnant polarization) 2.5kV/cm (0.11 μC/cm2) and 2.8kV/cm (0.15 μC/cm2) for y=0.08 and y=0.10 samples. We propose that the mechanism of Li induced ferroelectricity in ZnO is due to indirect dipole interaction via hole carriers. We investigated that if the sample has hole carriers ≥5.3×1017/cc, they can mediate the ferroelectricity. Ferroelectric and ferromagnetic measurements showed that higher electric polarization and larger magnetic moment is attained when the hole concentration is larger and vice versa. Our results confirmed the hole dependent coexistence of ferromagnetic and ferroelectric behavior at room temperature, which provide potential applications for switchable and memory devices.

Nanostructured layers of thermoelectric materials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Urban, Jeffrey J.; Lynch, Jared; Coates, Nelson; Forster, Jason; Sahu, Ayaskanta; Chabinyc, Michael; Russ, Boris

2018-01-30

This disclosure provides systems, methods, and apparatus related to thermoelectric materials. In one aspect, a method includes providing a plurality of nanostructures. The plurality of nanostructures comprise a thermoelectric material, with each nanostructure of the plurality of nanostructures having first ligands disposed on a surface of the nanostructure. The plurality of nanostructures is mixed with a solution containing second ligands and a ligand exchange process occurs in which the first ligands disposed on the plurality of nanostructures are replaced with the second ligands. The plurality of nanostructures is deposited on a substrate to form a layer. The layer is thermally annealed.

Organic Nonvolatile Memory Devices Based on Ferroelectricity

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Naber, Ronald C. G.; Asadi, Kamal; Blom, Paul W. M.; de Leeuw, Dago M.; de Boer, Bert

2010-01-01

A memory functionality is a prerequisite for many applications of electronic devices. Organic nonvolatile memory devices based on ferroelectricity are a promising approach toward the development of a low-cost memory technology. In this Review Article we discuss the latest developments in this area

Organic nonvolatile memory devices based on ferroelectricity

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Naber, R.C.G.; Asadi, K.; Blom, P.W.M.; Leeuw, D.M. de; Boer, B. de

2010-01-01

A memory functionality is a prerequisite for many applications of electronic devices. Organic nonvolatile memory devices based on ferroelectricity are a promising approach toward the development of a low-cost memory technology. In this Review Article we discuss the latest developments in this area

Flexible NAND-Like Organic Ferroelectric Memory Array

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kam, B.; Ke, T.H.; Chasin, A.; Tyagi, M.; Cristoferi, C.; Tempelaars, K.; Breemen, A.J.J.M. van; Myny, K.; Schols, S.; Genoe, J.; Gelinck, G.H.; Heremans, P.

2014-01-01

We present a memory array of organic ferroelectric field-effect transistors (OFeFETs) on flexible substrates. The OFeFETs are connected serially, similar to the NAND architecture of flash memory, which offers the highest memory density of transistor memories. We demonstrate a reliable addressing

Electrical characterization of thin film ferroelectric capacitors

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tiggelman, M.P.J.; Reimann, K.; Klee, M.; Beelen, D.; Keur, W.; Schmitz, Jurriaan; Hueting, Raymond Josephus Engelbart

2006-01-01

Tunable capacitors can be used to facilitate the reduction of components in wireless technologies. The tunability of the capacitors is caused by the sensitivity of the relative dielectric constant to a change in polarization with electric field. Thin film ferroelectric MIM capacitors on silicon

Flexible, ferroelectric nanoparticle doped polymer dispersed liquid crystal devices for lower switching voltage and nanoenergy generation

Science.gov (United States)

Nimmy John, V.; Varanakkottu, Subramanyan Namboodiri; Varghese, Soney

2018-06-01

Flexible polymer dispersed liquid crystal (F-PDLC) devices were fabricated using transparent conducting ITO/PET film. Polymerization induced phase separation (PIPS) method was used for pure and ferroelectric BaTiO3 (BTO) and ZnO doped PDLC devices. The distribution of nanoparticles in the PDLC and the formation of micro cavities were studied using field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). It was observed that the addition of ferroelectric BTO nanoparticles has reduced the threshold voltage (Vth) and saturation voltage (Vsat) of FNP-PDLC by 85% and 41% respectively due to the spontaneous polarization of ferroelectric nanoparticles. The ferroelectric properties of BTO and ZnO in the fabricated devices were investigated using dynamic contact electrostatic force microscopy (DC EFM). Flexing the device can generate a potential due to the piezo-tribo electric effect of the ferroelectric nanomaterial doped in the PDLC matrix, which could be utilized as an energy generating system. The switching voltage after multiple flexing was also studied and found to be in par with non-flexing situations.

Enhanced magnetic and ferroelectric properties in scandium doped nano Bi{sub 2}Fe{sub 4}O{sub 9}

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dutta, Dimple P., E-mail: dimpled@barc.gov.in [Chemistry Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 400085 (India); Sudakar, C.; Mocherla, Pavana S.V. [Department of Physics, IIT Madras, Chennai 600 036 (India); Mandal, Balaji P.; Jayakumar, Onnatu D. [Chemistry Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 400085 (India); Tyagi, Avesh K., E-mail: aktyagi@barc.gov.in [Chemistry Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 400085 (India)

2012-08-15

In this study we report the synthesis of undoped and Sc{sup 3+} doped Bi{sub 2}Fe{sub 4}O{sub 9} nanoparticles using sonochemical technique. X-ray diffraction reveals that all samples are single phase with no impurities detected. EDS analysis was done to confirm the extent of Sc{sup 3+} doping in the samples. The size and morphology of the nanoparticles have been analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The Bi{sub 2}Fe{sub 4}O{sub 9} nanoparticles show a weak ferromagnetic behavior at room temperature, which is quite different from the linear M-H relationship reported for bulk Bi{sub 2}Fe{sub 4}O{sub 9}. A magnetization of 0.144 {mu}B/f.u. is obtained at 300 K, which is mainly attributed to the uncompensated moments at the disordered particle surface resulting from the reduced coordination of the surface spins, arising due to lattice strain or oxygen deficiency. Addition of Sc{sup 3+} dopant in varying concentrations in these Bi{sub 2}Fe{sub 4}O{sub 9} nanoparticles, improves their magnetic as well as ferroelectric properties. The leakage current is considerably reduced and electric polarization increases significantly in case of Bi{sub 2}Fe{sub 4(1-x)}Sc{sub x}O{sub 9} (x = 0.1) nanoparticles. Thus it can be inferred that Sc{sup 3+} doped Bi{sub 2}Fe{sub 4}O{sub 9} nanoparticles shows promise as good multiferroic materials. -- Graphical abstract: Undoped and Sc{sup 3+} doped Bi{sub 2}Fe{sub 4}O{sub 9} nanoparticles have been synthesized using sonochemical technique. The bi-functionalities of Sc{sup 3+} doped Bi{sub 2}Fe{sub 4}O{sub 9} nanoparticles have been demonstrated. The Bi{sub 2}Fe{sub 4(1-x)}Sc{sub x}O{sub 9} (x = 0.1) nanoparticles showed enhanced magnetic and ferroelectric properties with considerably less lossy characteristics compared to the bulk Bi{sub 2}Fe{sub 4}O{sub 9}. Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Phase pure Bi{sub 2}Fe{sub 4}O{sub 9} nanostructures synthesized using a facile

Application of Dielectric, Ferroelectric and Piezoelectric Thin Film Devices in Mobile Communication and Medical Systems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Klee, M.; Beelen, D.; Keurl, W.; Kiewitt, R.; Kumar, B.; Mauczok, R.; Reimann, K.; Renders, Ch.; Roest, A.; Roozeboom, F.; Steeneken, P.G.; Tiggelman, M.P.J.; Vanhelmont, F.; Wunnicke, O.; Lok, P.; Neumann, K.; Fraser, J.; Schmitz, G.

2007-01-01

Dielectric, ferroelectric and piezoelectric thin films are getting more and more attention for next generation mobile communication and medical systems. Thin film technologies based on dielectric, ferroelectric and piezoelectric thin films enable System-in-Package (SiP) devices, resulting in optimal

A finite element model of ferroelectric/ferroelastic polycrystals

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

HWANG,STEPHEN C.; MCMEEKING,ROBERT M.

2000-02-17

A finite element model of polarization switching in a polycrystalline ferroelectric/ferroelastic ceramic is developed. It is assumed that a crystallite switches if the reduction in potential energy of the polycrystal exceeds a critical energy barrier per unit volume of switching material. Each crystallite is represented by a finite element with the possible dipole directions assigned randomly subject to crystallographic constraints. The model accounts for both electric field induced (i.e. ferroelectric) switching and stress induced (i.e. ferroelastic) switching with piezoelectric interactions. Experimentally measured elastic, dielectric, and piezoelectric constants are used consistently, but different effective critical energy barriers are selected phenomenologically. Electric displacement versus electric field, strain versus electric field, stress versus strain, and stress versus electric displacement loops of a ceramic lead lanthanum zirconate titanate (PLZT) are modeled well below the Curie temperature.

Preparation and electromagnetic properties of low-temperature sintered ferroelectric-ferrite composite ceramics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yue Zhenxing; Chen Shaofeng; Qi Xiwei; Gui Zhilun; Li Longtu

2004-01-01

For the purpose of multilayer chip EMI filters, the new ferroelectric-ferrite composite ceramics were prepared by mixing PMZNT relaxor ferroelectric powder with composition of 0.85Pb(Mg 1/3 Nb 2/3 )O 3 -0.1Pb(Ni 1/3 Nb 2/3 )O 3 -0.05PbTiO 3 and NiCuZn ferrite powder with composition of (Ni 0.20 Cu 0.20 Zn 0.60 )O(Fe 2 O 3 ) 0.97 at low sintering temperatures. A small amount of Bi 2 O 3 was added to low sintering temperature. Consequently, the dense composite ceramics were obtained at relative low sintering temperatures, which were lower than 940 deg. C. The X-ray diffractometer (XRD) identifications showed that the sintered ceramics retained the presence of distinct ferroelectric and ferrite phases. The sintering studies and scanning electron microscope (SEM) observations revealed that the co-existed two phases affect the sintering behavior and grain growth of components. The electromagnetic properties, such as dielectric constant and initial permeability, change continuously between those of two components. Thus, the low-temperature sintered ferroelectric-ferrite composite ceramics with tunable electromagnetic properties were prepared by adjusting the relative content of two components. These materials can be used for multilayer chip EMI filters with various properties

Selective control of multiple ferroelectric switching pathways using a trailing flexoelectric field

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Sung Min; Wang, Bo; Das, Saikat; Chae, Seung Chul; Chung, Jin-Seok; Yoon, Jong-Gul; Chen, Long-Qing; Yang, Sang Mo; Noh, Tae Won

2018-05-01

Flexoelectricity is an electromechanical coupling between electrical polarization and a strain gradient1 that enables mechanical manipulation of polarization without applying an electrical bias2,3. Recently, flexoelectricity was directly demonstrated by mechanically switching the out-of-plane polarization of a uniaxial system with a scanning probe microscope tip3,4. However, the successful application of flexoelectricity in low-symmetry multiaxial ferroelectrics and therefore active manipulation of multiple domains via flexoelectricity have not yet been achieved. Here, we demonstrate that the symmetry-breaking flexoelectricity offers a powerful route for the selective control of multiple domain switching pathways in multiaxial ferroelectric materials. Specifically, we use a trailing flexoelectric field that is created by the motion of a mechanically loaded scanning probe microscope tip. By controlling the SPM scan direction, we can deterministically select either stable 71° ferroelastic switching or 180° ferroelectric switching in a multiferroic magnetoelectric BiFeO3 thin film. Phase-field simulations reveal that the amplified in-plane trailing flexoelectric field is essential for this domain engineering. Moreover, we show that mechanically switched domains have a good retention property. This work opens a new avenue for the deterministic selection of nanoscale ferroelectric domains in low-symmetry materials for non-volatile magnetoelectric devices and multilevel data storage.

Dynamic fatigue on repolarization of lead zirconate-titanate base ceramics with various ferroelectric hardness

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gavrilyachenko, V.G.; Semenchev, A.F.; Sklyarova, E.N.; Kuznetsova, E.M.

2006-01-01

One studied experimentally changes of the residual polarization in lead zirconate-titanate base ceramics with various ferroelectric hardness under the effect of a strong varying field. The twinning and untwinning of crystallites accompanying repolarization is assumed to be the basic mechanism of propagation of the crystalline structure defects governing the fatigue rates of the ferroelectric-soft ceramics. In ferroelectric-hard ceramics crystallites the stable configurations of mechanical twins, the result of the secondary twinning, are formed when the hysteresis loop is formed. At repolarization in the mentioned structures one observes no motion of the twin boundaries, and the fatigue rates are low ones [ru

Impact of the electrode material and shape on performance of intrinsically tunable ferroelectric FBARs.

Science.gov (United States)

Vorobiev, Andrei; Gevorgian, Spartak

2014-05-01

Experiment-based analysis of losses in tunable ferroelectric xBiFeO3-(1-x)BaTiO3 (BF-BT) film bulk acoustic wave resonators (FBARs) is reported. The Q-factors, effective coupling coefficients, and tunabilities are considered as functions of surface roughness of the ferroelectric film, the acoustic impedance and shape of the electrodes/interconnecting strips, leakage of acoustic waves into the substrate via Bragg reflector, and the relative thicknesses of the electrodes and ferroelectric film. Compared with Al, the high acoustic impedance of Pt electrodes provides higher Q-factor, coupling coefficient, and tunability. However, using Pt in the interconnecting strips results in reduction of the Q-factor.

Evaluation of the density of the charge trapped in organic ferroelectric capacitors based on the Mott-Schottky model

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Won-Ho [Samsung Display Co. Ltd., Yongin (Korea, Republic of); Kwon, Jin-Hyuk; Park, Gyeong-Tae; Kim, Jae-Hyun; Bae, Jin-Hyuk [Kyungpook National University, Daegu (Korea, Republic of); Zhang, Xue; Park, Jae-Hoon [Hallym University, Chuncheon (Korea, Republic of)

2014-09-15

Organic ferroelectric capacitors were fabricated using pentacene and poly (vinylidene fluoride trifluoroethylene) (PVDF-TrFE) as an organic semiconductor and a ferroelectric material, respectively. A paraelectric poly(vinyl cinnamate) layer was adopted as an interlayer between the PVDFTrFE layer and the bottom electrode. The paraelectric interlayer induced a depolarization field opposite to the direction of the polarization formed in the ferroelectric PVDF-TrFE insulator, thereby suppressing spontaneous polarization. As a result, the Mott-Schottky model could be used to evaluate, from the extracted flat-band voltages, the density of the charge trapped in the organic ferroelectric capacitors.

Ferroelectric inverse opals with electrically tunable photonic band gap

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Bo; Zhou Ji; Li Longtu; Wang Xingjun; Liu Xiaohan; Zi Jian

2003-01-01

We present a scheme for tuning the photonic band gap (PBG) by an external electric field in a ferroelectric inverse opal structure. The inverse opals, consisting of ferroelectric (Pb,La)(Zr,Ti)O 3 (PLZT) ceramics, were synthesized by a sol-gel process. Optical reflection spectra show that the PBG of the PLZT inverse opals shifts continuously with the change in the applied electric field. As the photonic crystals (PCs) consist of the high-refractive-index constituent and possess an 'all-solid' structure, it should supply a more reliable mode to tune the PBG by the electric field for the superprism effect in PCs. It should be of high interest in device applications

Critical properties of symmetric nanoscale metal-ferroelectric-metal capacitors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zheng Yue; Cai, M.Q.; Woo, C.H.

2010-01-01

The size, surface and interface effects on the magnitude and stability of spontaneous polarization in a symmetric nanoscale ferroelectric capacitor were studied by analyzing its evolutionary trajectory based on a thermodynamic model. Analytic expressions of the Curie temperature, spontaneous polarization, critical thickness and the Curie-Weiss relation were derived, taking into account the effects of the depolarization field, built-in electric field, interfaces and surfaces. Our results show that the critical properties are not only functions of the ambient temperature, misfit strain and electromechanical boundary conditions, but also depend on the characteristics of electrodes, surfaces and interfaces, through the incomplete charge compensation, near-surface variation of polarization and work function steps of ferroelectric-electrode interfaces, which are adjustable.

One-dimensional thermodynamical model for poling of ferroelectric ceramics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bassiouny, E.

1990-11-01

In this work, we use a model developed to deduce a one-dimensional model for the description of the poling of ferroelectric ceramics. This is built within the scheme of the thermodynamical theory of internal variables. The model produces both plastic and electric hysteresis effects in the form of ''plasticity'', i.e., rate-independent evolution equations for the plastic strain, and the residual electric polarization and both mechanical and electric hardenings. The influence of stresses on ferroelectric hysteresis loops through piezoelectricity and electrostriction is a natural outcome of this model. Some simple experimental methods for the determination of the material coefficients of the considered ceramics are suggested. (author). 21 refs, 3 figs

Optical response of heterogeneous polymer layers containing silver nanostructures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miriam Carlberg

2017-05-01

Full Text Available This work is focused on the study of the optical properties of silver nanostructures embedded in a polymer host matrix. The introduction of silver nanostructures in polymer thin films is assumed to result in layers having adaptable optical properties. Thin film layers with inclusions of differently shaped nanoparticles, such as nanospheres and nanoprisms, and of different sizes, are optically characterized. The nanoparticles are produced by a simple chemical synthesis at room temperature in water. The plasmonic resonance peaks of the different colloidal solutions range from 390 to 1300 nm. The non-absorbing, transparent polymer matrix poly(vinylpyrrolidone (PVP was chosen because of its suitable optical and chemical properties. The optical studies of the layers include spectrophotometry and spectroscopic ellipsometry measurements, which provide information about the reflection, transmission, absorption of the material as well as the complex optical indices, n and k. Finite difference time domain simulations of nanoparticles in thin film layers allow the visualization of the nanoparticle interactions or the electric field enhancement on and around the nanoparticles to complete the optical characterization. A simple analysis method is proposed to obtain the complex refractive index of nanospheres and nanoprisms in a polymer matrix.

Interfacial Nb-substitution induced anomalous enhancement of polarization and conductivity in BaTiO3 ferroelectric tunnel junctions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H. F. Li

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Using density functional theory (DFT method combined with non-equilibrium Green’s function approach, we systematically investigated the structural, ferroelectric and electronic transport properties of Pt/BaTiO3/Pt ferroelectric tunnel junctions (FTJ with the interface atomic layers doped by charge neutral NbTi substitution. It is found that interfacial NbTi substitution will produce several anomalous effects such as the vanishing of ferroelectric critical thickness and the decrease of junction resistance against tunneling current. Consequently, the thickness of the ferroelectric thin film (FTF in the FTJ can be reduced, and both the electroresistance effect and sensitivity to external bias of the FTJ are enhanced. Our calculations indicate that the enhancements of conductivity and ferroelectric distortion can coexist in FTJs, which should be important for applications of functional electronic devices based on FTJs.

"Brick-and-Mortar" Nanostructured Interphase for Glass-Fiber-Reinforced Polymer Composites.

Science.gov (United States)

De Luca, Francois; Sernicola, Giorgio; Shaffer, Milo S P; Bismarck, Alexander

2018-02-28

The fiber-matrix interface plays a critical role in determining composite mechanical properties. While a strong interface tends to provide high strength, a weak interface enables extensive debonding, leading to a high degree of energy absorption. Balancing these conflicting requirements by engineering composite interfaces to improve strength and toughness simultaneously still remains a great challenge. Here, a nanostructured fiber coating was realized to manifest the critical characteristics of natural nacre, at a reduced length scale, consistent with the surface curvature of fibers. The new interphase contains a high proportion (∼90 wt %) of well-aligned inorganic platelets embedded in a polymer; the window of suitable platelet dimensions is very narrow, with an optimized platelet width and thickness of about 130 and 13 nm, respectively. An anisotropic, nanostructured coating was uniformly and conformally deposited onto a large number of 9 μm diameter glass fibers, simultaneously, using self-limiting layer-by-layer assembly (LbL); this parallel approach demonstrates a promising strategy to exploit LbL methods at scale. The resulting nanocomposite interphase, primarily loaded in shear, provides new mechanisms for stress dissipation and plastic deformation. The energy released by fiber breakage in tension appear to spread and dissipate within the nanostructured interphase, accompanied by stable fiber slippage, while the interfacial strength was improved up to 30%.

Ferroelectric control of magnetization in BiFeO3/CoFe heterostructures.

Science.gov (United States)

Gajek, Martin; Martin, Lane; Heron, John; Seidel, Jan; Ramesh, Ramamoorthy

2009-03-01

The cross coupling between ferroic order parameters in multiferroics opens an alternative for the control of magnetism in magnetoelectric devices by purely electrical means. We first report on the exchange coupling between BiFeO3, an antiferromagnetic ferroelectric , and CoFe. We then show that the domain structure of the ferromagnet can be changed by poling the ferroelectric layer. Finally, we will discuss the implementation of our findings into possible device schemes.

Ab-initio study of the relation between electric polarization and electric field gradients in ferroelectrics

CERN Document Server

Gonçalves, J N; Correia, J G; Butz, T; Picozzi, S; Fenta, A S; Amaral, V S

2012-01-01

The hyperfine interaction between the quadrupole moment of atomic nuclei and the electric field gradient (EFG) provides information on the electronic charge distribution close to a given atomic site. In ferroelectric materials, the loss of inversion symmetry of the electronic charge distribution is necessary for the appearance of the electric polarization. We present first-principles density functional theory calculations of ferroelectrics such as BaTiO$_{3}$, KNbO$_{3}$, PbTiO$_{3}$ and other oxides with perovskite structures, by focusing on both EFG tensors and polarization. We analyze the EFG tensor properties such as orientation and correlation between components and their relation with electric polarization. This work supports previous studies of ferroelectric materials where a relation between EFG tensors and polarization was observed, which may be exploited to study the ferroelectric order when standard techniques to measure polarization are not easily applied.

Tensile strain effect in ferroelectric perovskite oxide thin films on spinel magnesium aluminum oxide substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Xiaolan

Ferroelectrics are used in FeRAM (Ferroelectric random-access memory). Currently (Pb,Zr)TiO3 is the most common ferroelectric material. To get lead-free and high performance ferroelectric material, we investigated perovskite ferroelectric oxides (Ba,Sr)TiO3 and BiFeO3 films with strain. Compressive strain has been investigated intensively, but the effects of tensile strain on the perovskite films have yet to be explored. We have deposited (Ba,Sr)TiO3, BiFeO3 and related films by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) and analyzed the films by X-ray diffractometry (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), etc. To obtain inherently fully strained films, the selection of the appropriate substrates is crucial. MgAl2O4 matches best with good quality and size, yet the spinel structure has an intrinsic incompatibility to that of perovskite. We introduced a rock-salt structure material (Ni 1-xAlxO1+delta) as a buffer layer to mediate the structural mismatch for (Ba,Sr)TiO3 films. With buffer layer Ni1-xAlxO1+delta, we show that the BST films have high quality crystallization and are coherently epitaxial. AFM images show that the films have smoother surfaces when including the buffer layer, indicating an inherent compatibility between BST-NAO and NAO-MAO. In-plane Ferroelectricity measurement shows double hysteresis loops, indicating an antiferroelectric-like behavior: pinned ferroelectric domains with antiparallel alignments of polarization. The Curie temperatures of the coherent fully strained BST films are also measured. It is higher than 900°C, at least 800°C higher than that of bulk. The improved Curie temperature makes the use of BST as FeRAM feasible. We found that the special behaviors of ferroelectricity including hysteresis loop and Curie temperature are due to inherent fully tensile strain. This might be a clue of physics inside ferroelectric stain engineering. An out-of-plane ferroelectricity measurement would provide a full whole story of the tensile strain. However, a

Guest Editoria, Ferroelectrics, 323, 1

OpenAIRE

Krupanidhi, SB

2005-01-01

The Fourth Asian Meeting on Ferroelectricity (AMF-4)was organized at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, INDIA during December 12–15, 2003. The organization of the conferencewas cosponsored by various agencies which included the Department of Science & Technology (DST), Defense R&D Organization (DRDO), Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Materials Research Society of India (MRSI), Indian Institute of Science (IISC), IEEE UFFC (USA), Taylor and Francis Scientific P...

Characterization of current transport in ferroelectric polymer devices

KAUST Repository

Hanna, Amir; Bhansali, Unnat Sampatraj; Khan, Yasser; Alshareef, Husam N.

2014-01-01

We report the charge injection characteristics in poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene), P(VDF-TrFE), as a function of electrode material in metal/ferroelectric/metal device structures. Symmetric and asymmetric devices with Al, Ag, Au and Pt

Retention of intermediate polarization states in ferroelectric materials enabling memories for multi-bit data storage

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhao, Dong; Asadi, Kamal; Blom, Paul W. M.; Leeuw, Dago M. de, E-mail: deleeuw@mpip-mainz.mpg.de [Max-Planck Institute for Polymer Research, Ackermannweg 10, 55128 Mainz (Germany); Katsouras, Ilias [Holst Centre, High Tech Campus 31, 5656AE Eindhoven (Netherlands); Groen, Wilhelm A. [Holst Centre, High Tech Campus 31, 5656AE Eindhoven (Netherlands); Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Kluyverweg 1 2629 HS, Delft (Netherlands)

2016-06-06

A homogeneous ferroelectric single crystal exhibits only two remanent polarization states that are stable over time, whereas intermediate, or unsaturated, polarization states are thermodynamically instable. Commonly used ferroelectric materials however, are inhomogeneous polycrystalline thin films or ceramics. To investigate the stability of intermediate polarization states, formed upon incomplete, or partial, switching, we have systematically studied their retention in capacitors comprising two classic ferroelectric materials, viz. random copolymer of vinylidene fluoride with trifluoroethylene, P(VDF-TrFE), and Pb(Zr,Ti)O{sub 3}. Each experiment started from a discharged and electrically depolarized ferroelectric capacitor. Voltage pulses were applied to set the given polarization states. The retention was measured as a function of time at various temperatures. The intermediate polarization states are stable over time, up to the Curie temperature. We argue that the remarkable stability originates from the coexistence of effectively independent domains, with different values of polarization and coercive field. A domain growth model is derived quantitatively describing deterministic switching between the intermediate polarization states. We show that by using well-defined voltage pulses, the polarization can be set to any arbitrary value, allowing arithmetic programming. The feasibility of arithmetic programming along with the inherent stability of intermediate polarization states makes ferroelectric materials ideal candidates for multibit data storage.

Retention of intermediate polarization states in ferroelectric materials enabling memories for multi-bit data storage

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Dong; Katsouras, Ilias; Asadi, Kamal; Groen, Wilhelm A.; Blom, Paul W. M.; de Leeuw, Dago M.

2016-06-01

A homogeneous ferroelectric single crystal exhibits only two remanent polarization states that are stable over time, whereas intermediate, or unsaturated, polarization states are thermodynamically instable. Commonly used ferroelectric materials however, are inhomogeneous polycrystalline thin films or ceramics. To investigate the stability of intermediate polarization states, formed upon incomplete, or partial, switching, we have systematically studied their retention in capacitors comprising two classic ferroelectric materials, viz. random copolymer of vinylidene fluoride with trifluoroethylene, P(VDF-TrFE), and Pb(Zr,Ti)O3. Each experiment started from a discharged and electrically depolarized ferroelectric capacitor. Voltage pulses were applied to set the given polarization states. The retention was measured as a function of time at various temperatures. The intermediate polarization states are stable over time, up to the Curie temperature. We argue that the remarkable stability originates from the coexistence of effectively independent domains, with different values of polarization and coercive field. A domain growth model is derived quantitatively describing deterministic switching between the intermediate polarization states. We show that by using well-defined voltage pulses, the polarization can be set to any arbitrary value, allowing arithmetic programming. The feasibility of arithmetic programming along with the inherent stability of intermediate polarization states makes ferroelectric materials ideal candidates for multibit data storage.

Piezoelectricity and ferroelectricity of cellular polypropylene electrets films characterized by piezoresponse force microscopy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miao, Hongchen; Sun, Yao; Zhou, Xilong; Li, Yingwei [LTCS and Department of Mechanics and Engineering Science, College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871 (China); Li, Faxin, E-mail: lifaxin@pku.edu.cn [LTCS and Department of Mechanics and Engineering Science, College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871 (China); HEDPS and Center for Applied Physics and Technology, Peking University, Beijing (China)

2014-08-14

Cellular electrets polymer is a new ferroelectret material exhibiting large piezoelectricity and has attracted considerable attentions in researches and industries. Property characterization is very important for this material and current investigations are mostly on macroscopic properties. In this work, we conduct nanoscale piezoelectric and ferroelectric characterizations of cellular polypropylene (PP) films using piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM). First, both the single-frequency PFM and dual-frequency resonance-tracking PFM testings were conducted on the cellular PP film. The localized piezoelectric constant d{sub 33} is estimated to be 7–11pC/N by correcting the resonance magnification with quality factor and it is about one order lower than the macroscopic value. Next, using the switching spectroscopy PFM (SS-PFM), we studied polarization switching behavior of the cellular PP films. Results show that it exhibits the typical ferroelectric-like phase hysteresis loops and butterfly-shaped amplitude loops, which is similar to that of a poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) ferroelectric polymer film. However, both the phase and amplitude loops of the PP film are intensively asymmetric, which is thought to be caused by the nonzero remnant polarization after poling. Then, the D-E hysteresis loops of both the cellular PP film and PVDF film were measured by using the same wave form as that used in the SS-PFM, and the results show significant differences. Finally, we suggest that the ferroelectric-like behavior of cellular electrets films should be distinguished from that of typical ferroelectrics, both macroscopically and microscopically.

Energy band alignment at ferroelectric/electrode interface determined by photoelectron spectroscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen Feng; Wu Wen-Bin; Li Shun-Yi; Klein Andreas

2014-01-01

The most important interface-related quantities determined by band alignment are the barrier heights for charge transport, given by the Fermi level position at the interface. Taking Pb(Zr,Ti)O 3 (PZT) as a typical ferroelectric material and applying X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), we briefly review the interface formation and barrier heights at the interfaces between PZT and electrodes made of various metals or conductive oxides. Polarization dependence of the Schottky barrier height at a ferroelectric/electrode interface is also directly observed using XPS. (topical review - magnetism, magnetic materials, and interdisciplinary research)

Self-ordering of nontrivial topological polarization structures in nanoporous ferroelectrics.

Science.gov (United States)

Van Lich, Le; Shimada, Takahiro; Wang, Jie; Kitamura, Takayuki

2017-10-19

Topological field structures, such as skyrmions, merons, and vortices, are important features found in ordered systems with spontaneously broken symmetry. A plethora of topological field structures have been discovered in magnetic and ordered soft matter systems due to the presence of inherent chiral interactions, and this has provided a fruitful platform for unearthing additional groundbreaking functionalities. However, despite being one of the most important classes of ordered systems, ferroelectrics scarcely form topological polarization structures due to their lack of intrinsic chiral interactions. In the present study, we demonstrate using multiphysics phase-field modelling based on the Ginzburg-Landau theory that a rich assortment of nontrivial topological polarization structures, including hedgehogs, antivortices, multidirectional vortices, and vortex arrays, can be spontaneously formed in three-dimensional nanoporous ferroelectric structures. We realize that confining ferroelectrics to trivial geometries that are incompatible with the orientation symmetry may impose extrinsic frustration to the polarization field through the enhancement of depolarization fields at free porous surfaces. This frustration gives rise to symmetry breaking, resulting in the formation of nontrivial topological polarization structures as the ground state. We further topologically characterize the local accommodation of polarization structures by viewing them in a new perspective, in which polarization ordering can be mapped on the order parameter space, according to the topological theory of defects and homotopy theory. The results indicate that the nanoporous structures contain composite topological objects composed of two or more elementary topological polarization structures. The present study therefore offers a playground for exploring novel physical phenomena in ferroelectric systems as well as a novel nanoelectronics characterization platform for future topology

Catalytic behaviors of ruthenium dioxide films deposited on ferroelectrics substrates, by spin coating process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khachane, M.; Nowakowski, P.; Villain, S.; Gavarri, J.R.; Muller, Ch.; Elaatmani, M.; Outzourhite, A.; Luk'yanchuk, I.; Zegzouti, A.; Daoud, M.

2007-01-01

Catalytic ruthenium dioxide films were deposited by spin-coating process on ferroelectric films mainly constituted of SrBi 2 Ta 2 O 9 (SBT) and Ba 2 NaNb 5 O 15 (BNN) phases. After thermal treatment under air, these ferroelectric-catalytic systems were characterized by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). SEM images showed that RuO 2 film morphology depended on substrate nature. A study of CH 4 conversion into CO 2 and H 2 O was carried out using these catalytic-ferroelectric multilayers: the conversion was analyzed from Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, at various temperatures. Improved catalytic properties were observed for RuO 2 films deposited on BNN oxide layer

Development of highly-ordered, ferroelectric inverse opal films using sol gel infiltration

Science.gov (United States)

Matsuura, N.; Yang, S.; Sun, P.; Ruda, H. E.

2005-07-01

Highly-ordered, ferroelectric, Pb-doped Ba0.7Sr0.3TiO3, inverse opal films were fabricated by spin-coating a sol gel precursor into a polystyrene artificial opal template followed by heat treatment. Thin films of the ferroelectric were independently studied and were shown to exhibit good dielectric properties and high refractive indices. The excellent quality of the final inverse opal film using this spin-coating infiltration method was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy images and the good correspondence between optical reflection data and theoretical simulations. Using this method, the structural and material parameters of the final ferroelectric inverse opal film were easily adjusted by template heating and through repeated infiltrations, without changes in the initial template or precursor. Also, crack-free inverse opal thin films were fabricated over areas comparable to that of the initial crack-free polystyrene template (˜100 by 100 μm2).

Cooperative Couplings between Octahedral Rotations and Ferroelectricity in Perovskites and Related Materials

Science.gov (United States)

Gu, Teng; Scarbrough, Timothy; Yang, Yurong; Íñiguez, Jorge; Bellaiche, L.; Xiang, H. J.

2018-05-01

The structure of AB O 3 perovskites is dominated by two types of unstable modes, namely, the oxygen octahedral rotation (AFD) and ferroelectric (FE) mode. It is generally believed that such AFD and FE modes tend to compete and suppress each other. Here we use first-principles methods to show that a dual nature of the FE-AFD coupling, which turns from competitive to cooperative as the AFD mode strengthens, occurs in numerous perovskite oxides. We provide a unified model of such a dual interaction by introducing novel high-order coupling terms and explain the atomistic origin of the resulting new form of ferroelectricity in terms of universal steric mechanisms. We also predict that such a novel form of ferroelectricity leads to atypical behaviors, such as an enhancement of all the three Cartesian components of the electric polarization under hydrostatic pressure and compressive epitaxial strain.

Texture and anisotropy in ferroelectric lead metaniobate

Science.gov (United States)

Iverson, Benjamin John

Ferroelectric lead metaniobate, PbNb2O6, is a piezoelectric ceramic typically used because of its elevated Curie temperature and anisotropic properties. However, the piezoelectric constant, d33, is relatively low in randomly oriented ceramics when compared to other ferroelectrics. Crystallographic texturing is often employed to increase the piezoelectric constant because the spontaneous polarization axes of grains are better aligned. In this research, crystallographic textures induced through tape casting are distinguished from textures induced through electrical poling. Texture is described using multiple quantitative approaches utilizing X-ray and neutron time-of-flight diffraction. Tape casting lead metaniobate with an inclusion of acicular template particles induces an orthotropic texture distribution. Templated grain growth from seed particles oriented during casting results in anisotropic grain structures. The degree of preferred orientation is directly linked to the shear behavior of the tape cast slurry. Increases in template concentration, slurry viscosity, and casting velocity lead to larger textures by inducing more particle orientation in the tape casting plane. The maximum 010 texture distributions were two and a half multiples of a random distribution. Ferroelectric texture was induced by electrical poling. Electric poling increases the volume of material oriented with the spontaneous polarization direction in the material. Samples with an initial paraelectric texture exhibit a greater change in the domain volume fraction during electrical poling than randomly oriented ceramics. In tape cast samples, the resulting piezoelectric response is proportional to the 010 texture present prior to poling. This results in property anisotropy dependent on initial texture. Piezoelectric properties measured on the most textured ceramics were similar to those obtained with a commercial standard.

Modeling two-phase ferroelectric composites by sequential laminates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Idiart, Martín I

2014-01-01

Theoretical estimates are given for the overall dissipative response of two-phase ferroelectric composites with complex particulate microstructures under arbitrary loading histories. The ferroelectric behavior of the constituent phases is described via a stored energy density and a dissipation potential in accordance with the theory of generalized standard materials. An implicit time-discretization scheme is used to generate a variational representation of the overall response in terms of a single incremental potential. Estimates are then generated by constructing sequentially laminated microgeometries of particulate type whose overall incremental potential can be computed exactly. Because they are realizable, by construction, these estimates are guaranteed to conform with any material constraints, to satisfy all pertinent bounds and to exhibit the required convexity properties with no duality gap. Predictions for representative composite and porous systems are reported and discussed in the light of existing experimental data. (paper)

Hybrid Nanostructured Textile Bioelectrode for Unobtrusive Health Monitoring

Science.gov (United States)

Rai, Pratyush

Coronary heart disease, cardiovascular diseases and strokes are the leading causes of mortality in United States of America. Timely point-of-care health diagnostics and therapeutics for person suffering from these diseases can save thousands of lives. However, lack of accessible minimally intrusive health monitoring systems makes timely diagnosis difficult and sometimes impossible. To remedy this problem, a textile based nano-bio-sensor was developed and evaluated in this research. The sensor was made of novel array of vertically standing nanostructures that are conductive nano-fibers projecting from a conductive fabric. These sensor electrodes were tested for the quality of electrical contact that they made with the skin based on the fundamental skin impedance model and electromagnetic theory. The hybrid nanostructured dry electrodes provided large surface area and better contact with skin that improved electrode sensitivity and reduced the effect of changing skin properties, which are the problems usually faced by conventional dry textile electrodes. The dry electrodes can only register strong physiological signals because of high background noise levels, thus limiting the use of existing dry electrodes to heart rate measurement and respiration. Therefore, dry electrode systems cannot be used for recording complete ECG waveform, EEG or measurement of bioimpedance. Because of their improved sensitivity these hybrid nanostructured dry electrodes can be applied to measurement of ECG and bioimpedance with very low baseline noise. These textile based electrodes can be seamlessly integrated into garments of daily use such as vests and bra. In combination with embedded wireless network device that can communicate with smart phone, laptop or GPRS, they can function as wearable wireless health diagnostic systems.

Nanostructured composite reinforced material

Science.gov (United States)

Seals, Roland D [Oak Ridge, TN; Ripley, Edward B [Knoxville, TN; Ludtka, Gerard M [Oak Ridge, TN

2012-07-31

A family of materials wherein nanostructures and/or nanotubes are incorporated into a multi-component material arrangement, such as a metallic or ceramic alloy or composite/aggregate, producing a new material or metallic/ceramic alloy. The new material has significantly increased strength, up to several thousands of times normal and perhaps substantially more, as well as significantly decreased weight. The new materials may be manufactured into a component where the nanostructure or nanostructure reinforcement is incorporated into the bulk and/or matrix material, or as a coating where the nanostructure or nanostructure reinforcement is incorporated into the coating or surface of a "normal" substrate material. The nanostructures are incorporated into the material structure either randomly or aligned, within grains, or along or across grain boundaries.

Domain wall conductivity in semiconducting hexagonal ferroelectric TbMnO3 thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, D J; Gruverman, A; Connell, J G; Seo, S S A

2016-01-01

Although enhanced conductivity of ferroelectric domain boundaries has been found in BiFeO 3 and Pb(Zr,Ti)O 3 films as well as hexagonal rare-earth manganite single crystals, the mechanism of the domain wall conductivity is still under debate. Using conductive atomic force microscopy, we observe enhanced conductance at the electrically-neutral domain walls in semiconducting hexagonal ferroelectric TbMnO 3 thin films where the structure and polarization direction are strongly constrained along the c-axis. This result indicates that domain wall conductivity in ferroelectric rare-earth manganites is not limited to charged domain walls. We show that the observed conductivity in the TbMnO 3 films is governed by a single conduction mechanism, namely, the back-to-back Schottky diodes tuned by the segregation of defects. (paper)

Tunable band gap in epitaxial ferroelectric Ho(Mn,Ga)O{sub 3} films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Daesu; Noh, Tae Won, E-mail: twnoh@snu.ac.kr [Center for Correlated Electron Systems, Institute for Basic Science, Seoul 151-742 (Korea, Republic of); Department of Physics and Astronomy, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-742 (Korea, Republic of); Choi, Woo Seok [Department of Physics, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 440-746 (Korea, Republic of)

2016-05-09

Ferroelectrics have recently attracted attention as a new class of materials for use in optical and photovoltaic devices. We studied the electronic properties in epitaxially stabilized ferroelectric hexagonal Ho(Mn{sub 1−x}Ga{sub x})O{sub 3} (x = 0, 0.33, 0.67, and 1) thin films. Our films exhibited systematic changes in electronic structures, such as bandgap and optical transitions, according to the Ga concentration. In particular, the bandgap increased systematically from 1.4 to 3.2 eV, including the visible light region, with increasing Ga concentration from x = 0 to 1. These systematic changes, attributed to lattice parameter variations in epitaxial Ho(Mn{sub 1−x}Ga{sub x})O{sub 3} films, should prove useful for the design of optoelectronic devices based on ferroelectrics.

Analysis of the Measurement and Modeling of a Digital Inverter Based on a Ferroelectric Transistor

Science.gov (United States)

MacLeod, Todd C.; Phillips, Thomas A.; Sayyah, Rana; Ho, Fat D.

2009-01-01

The use of ferroelectric materials for digital memory devices is widely researched and implemented, but ferroelectric devices also possess unique characteristics that make them have interesting and useful properties in digital circuits. Because ferroelectric transistors possess the properties of hysteresis and nonlinearity, a digital inverter containing a FeFET has very different characteristics than one with a traditional FET. This paper characterizes the properties of the measurement and modeling of a FeFET based digital inverter. The circuit was set up using discrete FeFETs. The purpose of this circuit was not to produce a practical integrated circuit that could be inserted directly into existing digital circuits, but to explore the properties and characteristics of such a device and to look at possible future uses. Input and output characteristics are presented, as well as timing measurements. Comparisons are made between the ferroelectric device and the properties of a standard digital inverter. Potential benefits and possible uses of such a device are presented.

High-performance non-volatile organic ferroelectric memory on banknotes

KAUST Repository

Khan, Yasser; Bhansali, Unnat Sampatraj; Alshareef, Husam N.

2012-01-01

High-performance non-volatile polymer ferroelectric memory are fabricated on banknotes using poly(vinylidene fluoride trifluoroethylene). The devices show excellent performance with high remnant polarization, low operating voltages, low leakage

Phase transition properties of a cylindrical ferroelectric nanowire

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Based on the transverse Ising model (TIM) and using the mean-field theory, we inves- ... workers [11–13] to study the static and dynamic properties of ferroelectric superlattices. ... The mean-field expressions is usually used for a qualitative.

High electro-catalytic activities of glucose oxidase embedded one-dimensional ZnO nanostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sarkar, Nirmal K; Bhattacharyya, Swapan K

2013-01-01

One-dimensional ZnO nanorods and nanowires are separately synthesized on Zn substrate by simple hydrothermal processes at low temperatures. Electro-catalytic responses of glucose oxidase/ZnO/Zn electrodes using these two synthesized nanostructures of ZnO are reported and compared with others available in literature. It is apparent the Michaelis–Menten constant, K M app , for the present ZnO nanowire, having a greater aspect ratio, is found to be the lowest when compared with others. This sensor shows lower oxidation peak potential with a long detection range of 6.6 μM–380 mM and the highest sensitivity of ∼35.1 μA cm −2 mM −1 , among the reported values in the literature. Enzyme catalytic efficiency and turnover numbers are also found to be remarkably high. (paper)

Analysis and Optimization of Thin Film Ferroelectric Phase Shifters

Science.gov (United States)

Romanofsky, Robert R.; VanKeuls, Fred W.; Warner, Joseph D.; Mueller, Carl H.; Alterovitz, Samuel A.; Miranda, Felix A.; Qureshi, A. Haq; Romanofsky, Robert R. (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

Microwave phase shifters have been fabricated from (YBa2Cu3O(7-delta) or Au)/SrTiO3 and Au/Ba(x)Sr(1-x)TiO3 films on LaAlO3 and MgO substrates. These coupled microstrip devices rival the performance of their semiconductor counter-parts parts at Ku- and K-band frequencies. Typical insertion loss for room temperature ferroelectric phase shifters at K-band is approximately equal 5 dB. An experimental and theoretical investigation of these novel devices explains the role of the ferroelectric film in overall device performance. A roadmap to the development of a 3 dB insertion loss phase shifter that would enable a new type of phased array antenna is discussed.

Stable Ferroelectric Behavior of Nb-Modified Bi0.5K0.5TiO3-Bi(Mg0.5Ti0.5)O3 Lead-Free Relaxor Ferroelectric Ceramics

Science.gov (United States)

Zaman, Arif; Malik, Rizwan Ahmed; Maqbool, Adnan; Hussain, Ali; Ahmed, Tanveer; Song, Tae Kwon; Kim, Won-Jeong; Kim, Myong-Ho

2018-03-01

Crystal structure, dielectric, ferroelectric, piezoelectric, and electric field-induced strain properties of lead-free Nb-modified 0.96Bi0.5K0.5TiO3-0.04Bi(Mg0.5Ti0.5)O3 (BKT-BMT) piezoelectric ceramics were investigated. Crystal structure analysis showed a gradual phase transition from tetragonal to pseudocubic phase with increasing Nb content. The optimal piezoelectric property of small-signal d 33 was enhanced up to ˜ 68 pC/N with a lower coercive field ( E c) of ˜ 22 kV/cm and an improved remnant polarization ( P r) of ˜ 13 μC/cm2 for x = 0.020. A relaxor-like behavior with a frequency-dependent Curie temperature T m was observed, and a high T m around 320°C was obtained in the investigated system. This study suggests that the ferroelectric properties of BKT-BMT was significantly improved by means of Nb substitution. The possible shift of depolarization temperature T d toward high temperature T m may have triggered the spontaneous relaxor to ferroelectric phase transition with long-range ferroelectric order without any traces of a nonergodic relaxor state in contradiction with Bi0.5Na0.5TiO3-based systems. The possible enhancement in ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties near the critical composition x = 0.020 may be attributed to the increased anharmonicity of lattice vibrations which may facilitate the observed phase transition from a low-symmetry tetragonal to a high-symmetry cubic phase with a decrease in the lattice anisotropy of an undoped sample. This highly flexible (at a unit cell level) narrow compositional range triggers the enhancement of d 33 and P r values.

From antiferroelectricity to ferroelectricity in smectic mesophases ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

are not ferroelectric in the ground state, but upon alignment within an electric field .... Figure 3. Molecular organisation within polar smectic phases and possible ways to escape from a macroscopic polarisation in mesophases built up by polar layers. .... in which the molecules adapt a twisted orientation from the top to bottom.

Guest–host interaction in ferroelectric liquid crystal–nanoparticle ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Administrator

nanoparticles have been added to the pure ferroelectric liquid crystal (FLC) Felix 17/100. The nanoparticles .... To prepare the NPs, doped-FLC sample, an appropriate amount (in the .... permittivity and f the frequency while n, m and k are the.

Ferroelectric based catalysis: Switchable surface chemistry

Science.gov (United States)

Kakekhani, Arvin; Ismail-Beigi, Sohrab

2015-03-01

We describe a new class of catalysts that uses an epitaxial monolayer of a transition metal oxide on a ferroelectric substrate. The ferroelectric polarization switches the surface chemistry between strongly adsorptive and strongly desorptive regimes, circumventing difficulties encountered on non-switchable catalytic surfaces where the Sabatier principle dictates a moderate surface-molecule interaction strength. This method is general and can, in principle, be applied to many reactions, and for each case the choice of the transition oxide monolayer can be optimized. Here, as a specific example, we show how simultaneous NOx direct decomposition (into N2 and O2) and CO oxidation can be achieved efficiently on CrO2 terminated PbTiO3, while circumventing oxygen (and sulfur) poisoning issues. One should note that NOx direct decomposition has been an open challenge in automotive emission control industry. Our method can expand the range of catalytically active elements to those which are not conventionally considered for catalysis and which are more economical, e.g., Cr (for NOx direct decomposition and CO oxidation) instead of canonical precious metal catalysts. Primary support from Toyota Motor Engineering and Manufacturing, North America, Inc.

The Rayleigh law in silicon doped hafnium oxide ferroelectric thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Guan, Yan; Liu, Xiaohua [Key Laboratory of Materials Modification by Laser, Ion, and Electron Beams (Ministry of Education), School of Materials Science and Engineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian (China); Zhou, Dayu [Key Laboratory of Materials Modification by Laser, Ion, and Electron Beams (Ministry of Education), School of Materials Science and Engineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian (China); State Key Laboratory of Electronic Thin Films and Integrated Devices, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu (China); Xu, Jin [Department of Electronic Engineering, Dalian Neusoft University of Information, Dalian (China); Cao, Fei; Dong, Xianlin [Key Laboratory of Inorganic Functional Materials and Devices, Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai (China); Mueller, Johannes [Fraunhofer IPMS-CNT, Dresden (Germany); Schenk, Tony; Schroeder, Uwe [NaMLab gGmbH/TU Dresden (Germany)

2015-10-15

A wealth of studies have confirmed that the low-field hysteresis behaviour of ferroelectric bulk ceramics and thin films can be described using Rayleigh relations, and irreversible domain wall motion across the array of pining defects has been commonly accepted as the underlying micro-mechanism. Recently, HfO{sub 2} thin films incorporated with various dopants were reported to show pronounced ferroelectricity, however, their microscopic domain structure remains unclear till now. In this work, the effects of the applied electric field amplitude, frequency and temperature on the sub-coercive polarization reversal properties were investigated for 10 nm thick Si-doped HfO{sub 2} thin films. The applicability of the Rayleigh law to ultra-thin ferroelectric films was first confirmed, indicating the existence of a multi-domain structure. Since the grain size is about 20-30 nm, a direct observation of domain walls within the grains is rather challenging and this indirect method is a feasible approach to resolve the domain structure. (copyright 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

The Rayleigh law in silicon doped hafnium oxide ferroelectric thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guan, Yan; Liu, Xiaohua; Zhou, Dayu; Xu, Jin; Cao, Fei; Dong, Xianlin; Mueller, Johannes; Schenk, Tony; Schroeder, Uwe

2015-01-01

A wealth of studies have confirmed that the low-field hysteresis behaviour of ferroelectric bulk ceramics and thin films can be described using Rayleigh relations, and irreversible domain wall motion across the array of pining defects has been commonly accepted as the underlying micro-mechanism. Recently, HfO 2 thin films incorporated with various dopants were reported to show pronounced ferroelectricity, however, their microscopic domain structure remains unclear till now. In this work, the effects of the applied electric field amplitude, frequency and temperature on the sub-coercive polarization reversal properties were investigated for 10 nm thick Si-doped HfO 2 thin films. The applicability of the Rayleigh law to ultra-thin ferroelectric films was first confirmed, indicating the existence of a multi-domain structure. Since the grain size is about 20-30 nm, a direct observation of domain walls within the grains is rather challenging and this indirect method is a feasible approach to resolve the domain structure. (copyright 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Ferroelectric and electrical characterization of multiferroic BiFeO3 at the single nanoparticle level

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vasudevan, Rama K [ORNL; Bogle, K A [University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia; Kumar, Amit [ORNL; Jesse, Stephen [ORNL; Magaraggia, R [University of Glasgow; Stamps, R [University of Glasgow; Ogale, S [National Chemical Laboratory, India; Potdar, H S [National Chemical Laboratory, India

2011-01-01

Ferroelectric BiFeO3 (BFO) nanoparticles deposited on epitaxial substrates of SrRuO3 (SRO) and La1xSrxMnO3 (LSMO) were studied using band excitation piezoresponse spectroscopy (BEPS), piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM), and ferromagnetic resonance (FMR). BEPS confirms that the nanoparticles are ferroelectric in nature. Switching behavior of nanoparticle clusters were studied and showed evidence for inhomogeneous switching. The dimensionality of domains within nanoparticles was found to be fractal in nature, with a dimensionality constant of 1.4, on par with ferroelectric BFO thin-films under 100 nm in thickness. Ferromagnetic resonance studies indicate BFO nanoparticles only weakly affect the magnetic response of LSMO.

Ferroelectric and electrical characterization of multiferroic BiFeO3 at the single nanoparticle level

Science.gov (United States)

Vasudevan, R. K.; Bogle, K. A.; Kumar, A.; Jesse, S.; Magaraggia, R.; Stamps, R.; Ogale, S. B.; Potdar, H. S.; Nagarajan, V.

2011-12-01

Ferroelectric BiFeO3 (BFO) nanoparticles deposited on epitaxial substrates of SrRuO3 (SRO) and La1-xSrxMnO3 (LSMO) were studied using band excitation piezoresponse spectroscopy (BEPS), piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM), and ferromagnetic resonance (FMR). BEPS confirms that the nanoparticles are ferroelectric in nature. Switching behavior of nanoparticle clusters were studied and showed evidence for inhomogeneous switching. The dimensionality of domains within nanoparticles was found to be fractal in nature, with a dimensionality constant of ˜1.4, on par with ferroelectric BFO thin-films under 100 nm in thickness. Ferromagnetic resonance studies indicate BFO nanoparticles only weakly affect the magnetic response of LSMO.

Statistical mechanical lattice model of the dual-peak electrocaloric effect in ferroelectric relaxors and the role of pressure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dunne, Lawrence J; Axelsson, Anna-Karin; Alford, Neil McN; Valant, Matjaz; Manos, George

2011-01-01

Despite considerable effort, the microscopic origin of the electrocaloric (EC) effect in ferroelectric relaxors is still intensely discussed. Ferroelectric relaxors typically display a dual-peak EC effect, whose origin is uncertain. Here we present an exact statistical mechanical matrix treatment of a lattice model of polar nanoregions forming in a neutral background and use this approach to study the characteristics of the EC effect in ferroelectric relaxors under varying electric field and pressure. The dual peaks seen in the EC properties of ferroelectric relaxors are due to the formation and ordering of polar nanoregions. The model predicts significant enhancement of the EC temperature rise with pressure which may have some contribution to the giant EC effect.

Distribution of correlation radii in disordered ferroelectrics

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Glinchuk, M. D.; Eliseev, E. A.; Stepanovich, V. A.; Jastrabík, Lubomír

2002-01-01

Roč. 81, č. 25 (2002), s. 4808-4810 ISSN 0003-6951 R&D Projects: GA MŠk LN00A015 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z1010914 Keywords : disordered ferroelectrics * distribution of correlation radii * polar nanoregions Subject RIV: BM - Solid Matter Physics ; Magnetism Impact factor: 4.207, year: 2002

Electrical and ferroelectric properties of RF sputtered PZT/SBN on silicon for non-volatile memory applications

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Prashant; Jha, Rajesh Kumar; Singh, Rajat Kumar; Singh, B. R.

2018-02-01

We report the integration of multilayer ferroelectric film deposited by RF magnetron sputtering and explore the electrical characteristics for its application as the gate of ferroelectric field effect transistor for non-volatile memories. PZT (Pb[Zr0.35Ti0.65]O3) and SBN (SrBi2Nb2O9) ferroelectric materials were selected for the stack fabrication due to their large polarization and fatigue free properties respectively. Electrical characterization has been carried out to obtain memory window, leakage current density, PUND and endurance characteristics. Fabricated multilayer ferroelectric film capacitor structure shows large memory window of 17.73 V and leakage current density of the order 10-6 A cm-2 for the voltage sweep of -30 to +30 V. This multilayer gate stack of PZT/SBN shows promising endurance property with no degradation in the remnant polarization for the read/write iteration cycles upto 108.

Structural Consequences of Ferroelectric Nanolithography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

J Young Jo; P Chen; R Sichel; S Bake; R Smith; N Balke; S Kalinin; M Holt; J Maser; et al.

2011-12-31

Domains of remnant polarization can be written into ferroelectrics with nanoscale precision using scanning probe nanolithography techniques such as piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM). Understanding the structural effects accompanying this process has been challenging due to the lack of appropriate structural characterization tools. Synchrotron X-ray nanodiffraction provides images of the domain structure written by PFM into an epitaxial Pb(Zr,Ti)O{sub 3} thin film and simultaneously reveals structural effects arising from the writing process. A coherent scattering simulation including the superposition of the beams simultaneously diffracted by multiple mosaic blocks provides an excellent fit to the observed diffraction patterns. Domains in which the polarization is reversed from the as-grown state have a strain of up to 0.1% representing the piezoelectric response to unscreened surface charges. An additional X-ray microdiffraction study of the photon-energy dependence of the difference in diffracted intensity between opposite polarization states shows that this contrast has a crystallographic origin. The sign and magnitude of the intensity contrast between domains of opposite polarization are consistent with the polarization expected from PFM images and with the writing of domains through the entire thickness of the ferroelectric layer. The strain induced by writing provides a significant additional contribution to the increased free energy of the written domain state with respect to a uniformly polarized state.

Strain-induced structural, magnetic and ferroelectric properties of ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

2017-07-25

Jul 25, 2017 ... deposited on the composite film surface by DC sputtering techniques. The magnetic measurements of these composite films were performed using a vibratory sample magnetometer. (VSM). Ferroelectric properties of films were measured using a Precision multiferroic analyser. All measurements were per-.

Enhanced charge storage capability of Ge/GeO2 core/shell nanostructure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yuan, C L; Lee, P S

2008-01-01

A Ge/GeO 2 core/shell nanostructure embedded in an Al 2 O 3 gate dielectrics matrix was produced. A larger memory window with good data retention was observed in the fabricated metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) capacitor for Ge/GeO 2 core/shell nanoparticles compared to Ge nanoparticles only, which is due to the high percentage of defects located on the surface and grain boundaries of the GeO 2 shell. We believe that the findings presented here provide physical insight and offer useful guidelines to controllably modify the charge storage properties of indirect semiconductors through defect engineering

Enhanced charge storage capability of Ge/GeO(2) core/shell nanostructure.

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, C L; Lee, P S

2008-09-03

A Ge/GeO(2) core/shell nanostructure embedded in an Al(2)O(3) gate dielectrics matrix was produced. A larger memory window with good data retention was observed in the fabricated metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) capacitor for Ge/GeO(2) core/shell nanoparticles compared to Ge nanoparticles only, which is due to the high percentage of defects located on the surface and grain boundaries of the GeO(2) shell. We believe that the findings presented here provide physical insight and offer useful guidelines to controllably modify the charge storage properties of indirect semiconductors through defect engineering.

Tunable multiband ferroelectric devices for reconfigurable RF-frontends

CERN Document Server

Zheng, Yuliang

2013-01-01

Reconfigurable RF-frontends aim to cope with the continuous pursuit of wider frequency coverage, higher efficiency, further compactness and lower cost of ownership. They are expected to lay the foundations of future software defined or cognitive radios. As a potential enabling technology for the frontends, the tunable ferroelectric devices have shown not only enhanced performance but also new functionalities. This book explores the recent developments in the field. It provides a cross-sectional perspective on the interdisciplinary research. With attention to the devices based on ceramic thick-films and crystal thin-films, the book reviews the adapted technologies of material synthesis, film deposition and multilayer circuitry. Next, it highlights the original classes of thin-film ferroelectric devices, including stratified metal-insulator-metal varactors with suppression of acoustic resonance and programmable bi-stable high frequency capacitors. At the end the book analyzes how the frontends can be reformed b...

Relation between ferroelectric and antiferromagnetic order in RMn2O5

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Noda, Yukio; Kimura, Hiroyuki; Kamada, Youichi; Osawa, Toshihiro; Fukuda, Yosikazu; Ishikawa, Yoshihisa; Kobayashi, Satoru; Wakabayashi, Yusuke; Sawa, Hiroshi; Ikeda, Naoshi; Kohn, Kay

2006-01-01

RMn 2 O 5 (R=Y and rare earth) shows successive magnetic and ferroelectric phase transitions at about 45, 40, 39, 20 and 10K. We have reinvestigated the magnetic structure of YMn 2 O 5 at the commensurate phase (T=25K) using a single crystal four-circle diffractometer in order to discuss the mechanism of magnetoelectric interaction and the origin of ferroelectricity. We also observed the lattice modulation vectors (q L ) to compare the magnetic propagation vectors (q M ) by synchrotron X-ray diffraction. Improved magnetic structure data are compared with the theory recently proposed

Enhanced performance of ferroelectric materials under hydrostatic pressure

Science.gov (United States)

Chauhan, Aditya; Patel, Satyanarayan; Wang, Shuai; Novak, Nikola; Xu, Bai-Xiang; Lv, Peng; Vaish, Rahul; Lynch, Christopher S.

2017-12-01

Mechanical confinement or restricted degrees of freedom have been explored for its potential to enhance the performance of ferroelectric devices. It presents an easy and reversible method to tune the response for specific applications. However, such studies have been mainly limited to uni- or bi-axial stress. This study investigates the effect of hydrostatic pressure on the ferroelectric behavior of bulk polycrystalline Pb0.99Nb0.02(Zr0.95Ti0.05)0.98O3. Polarization versus electric field hysteresis plots were generated as a function of hydrostatic pressure for a range of operating temperatures (298-398 K). The application of hydrostatic pressure was observed to induce anti-ferroelectric like double hysteresis loops. This in turn enhances the piezoelectric, energy storage, energy harvesting, and electrocaloric effects. The hydrostatic piezoelectric coefficient (dh) was increased from 50 pCN-1 (0 MPa) to ˜900 pC N-1 (265 MPa) and ˜3200 pCN-1 (330 MPa) at 298 K. Energy storage density was observed to improve by more than 4 times under pressure, in the whole temperature range. The relative change in entropy was also observed to shift from ˜0 to 4.8 J kg-1 K-1 under an applied pressure of 325 MPa. This behavior can be attributed to the evolution of pinched hysteresis loops that have been explained using a phenomenological model. All values represent an improvement of several hundred percent compared to unbiased performance, indicating the potential benefits of the proposed methodology.

Embedded Leverage

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Frazzini, Andrea; Heje Pedersen, Lasse

find that asset classes with embedded leverage offer low risk-adjusted returns and, in the cross-section, higher embedded leverage is associated with lower returns. A portfolio which is long low-embedded-leverage securities and short high-embedded-leverage securities earns large abnormal returns...

Recoilless Factors in Nanostructured Iron-Based Powders

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guerault, H.; Labaye, Y.; Greneche, J.-M.

2001-01-01

57 Fe Moessbauer spectrometry was carried out on high-energy ball-milled crystalline compounds in order to study the milling effect on the Lamb-Moessbauer factor f. A comparison between metallic (α-Fe) and ionic (r-FeF 3 ) milled powders is proposed, evidencing different milling mechanisms. In the case of the ionic system, a notable enhancement of the f factor at 77 K is observed by freezing the powder into a resin. This suggests that, in addition to nanostructured aggregated particles, the milling procedure favours the obtention of isolated nanoparticles, the sizes of which are smaller than the critical size for the observation of the Moessbauer effect. In return, in the case of the metallic system, the absorption gain due to the embedding is much smaller, probably due to a better re-agglomeration of the metallic particles during the milling process

A ferroelectric electron gun in a free-electron maser experiment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Einat, M.; Jerby, E.; Rosenman, G.

2002-01-01

An electron-gun based on a ferroelectric cathode is studied in a free-electron maser (FEM) experiment. In this gun, the electrons are separated from the cathode surface plasma, and are accelerated in two stages. The electron energy-spread is reduced sufficiently for an FEM operation in the microwave regime. A 14 keV, 1-2 A e-beam is obtained in a 0.1-2.1 μs pulse width. The pulse repetition frequency attains 3.1 MHz in ∼50% duty-cycle. This gun is implemented in an FEM oscillator experiment operating around 3 GHz. The paper presents experimental results and discusses the applicability of ferroelectric guns in free-electron laser devices

A ferroelectric electron gun in a free-electron maser experiment

CERN Document Server

Einat, M; Rosenman, G

2002-01-01

An electron-gun based on a ferroelectric cathode is studied in a free-electron maser (FEM) experiment. In this gun, the electrons are separated from the cathode surface plasma, and are accelerated in two stages. The electron energy-spread is reduced sufficiently for an FEM operation in the microwave regime. A 14 keV, 1-2 A e-beam is obtained in a 0.1-2.1 mu s pulse width. The pulse repetition frequency attains 3.1 MHz in approx 50% duty-cycle. This gun is implemented in an FEM oscillator experiment operating around 3 GHz. The paper presents experimental results and discusses the applicability of ferroelectric guns in free-electron laser devices.

Phase and electrical properties of PZT thin films embedded with CuO nano-particles by a hybrid sol-gel route

Science.gov (United States)

Sreesattabud, Tharathip; Gibbons, Brady J.; Watcharapasorn, Anucha; Jiansirisomboon, Sukanda

2013-07-01

Pb(Zr0.52Ti0.48)O3 or PZT thin films embedded with CuO nano-particles were successfully prepared by a hybrid sol-gel process. In this process, CuO (0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5 and 1 wt. %) nanopowder was suspended in an organometallic solution of PZT, and then coated on platinised silicon substrate using a spin-coating technique. The influence of CuO nano-particles' dispersion on the phase of PZT thin films was investigated. XRD results showed a perovskite phase in all films. At the CuO concentration of 0.4-1 wt. %, a second phase was observed. The addition of CuO nano-particles affected the orientation of PZT thin films. The addition was also found to reduce the ferroelectric properties of PZT thin films. However, at 0.2 wt. % CuO concentration, the film exhibited good ferroelectric properties similar to those of PZT films. In addition, the fatigue retention properties of the PZT/CuO system was observed, and it showed 14% fatigue at 108 switching bipolar pulse cycles while the fatigue in PZT thin films was found to be 17% at the same switching bipolar pulse cycles.

Nanocharacterization of the negative stiffness of ferroelectric materials

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Skandani, A.A.; Čtvrtlík, Radim; Al-Haik, M.

2014-01-01

Roč. 105, č. 8 (2014), "082906-1"-"082906-5" ISSN 0003-6951 R&D Projects: GA TA ČR TA03010743 Institutional support: RVO:68378271 Keywords : ferroelectric materials * negative stiffness * thermomechanical environments Subject RIV: JJ - Other Materials Impact factor: 3.302, year: 2014

Embedding potentials for excited states of embedded species

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wesolowski, Tomasz A.

2014-01-01

Frozen-Density-Embedding Theory (FDET) is a formalism to obtain the upper bound of the ground-state energy of the total system and the corresponding embedded wavefunction by means of Euler-Lagrange equations [T. A. Wesolowski, Phys. Rev. A 77(1), 012504 (2008)]. FDET provides the expression for the embedding potential as a functional of the electron density of the embedded species, electron density of the environment, and the field generated by other charges in the environment. Under certain conditions, FDET leads to the exact ground-state energy and density of the whole system. Following Perdew-Levy theorem on stationary states of the ground-state energy functional, the other-than-ground-state stationary states of the FDET energy functional correspond to excited states. In the present work, we analyze such use of other-than-ground-state embedded wavefunctions obtained in practical calculations, i.e., when the FDET embedding potential is approximated. Three computational approaches based on FDET, that assure self-consistent excitation energy and embedded wavefunction dealing with the issue of orthogonality of embedded wavefunctions for different states in a different manner, are proposed and discussed

Monte Carlo simulations for describing the ferroelectric-relaxor crossover in BaTiO3-based solid solutions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Padurariu, Leontin; Enachescu, Cristian; Mitoseriu, Liliana

2011-01-01

The properties induced by the M 4+ addition (M = Zr, Sn, Hf) in BaM x Ti 1-x O 3 solid solutions have been described on the basis of a 2D Ising-like network and Monte Carlo calculations, in which BaMO 3 randomly distributed unit cells were considered as being non-ferroelectric. The polarization versus temperature dependences when increasing the M 4+ concentration (x) showed a continuous reduction of the remanent polarization and of the critical temperature corresponding to the ferroelectric-paraelectric transition and a modification from a first-order to a second-order phase transition with a broad temperature range for which the transition takes place, as commonly reported for relaxors. The model also describes the system's tendency to reduce the polar clusters' average size while increasing their stability in time at higher temperatures above the Curie range, when a ferroelectric-relaxor crossover is induced by increasing the substitution (x). The equilibrium micropolar states during the polarization reversal process while describing the P(E) loops were comparatively monitored for the ferroelectric (x = 0) and relaxor (x = 0.3) states. Polarization reversal in relaxor compositions proceeds by the growth of several nucleated domains (the 'labyrinthine domain pattern') instead of the large scale domain formation typical for the ferroelectric state. The spatial and temporal evolution of the polar clusters in BaM x Ti 1-x O 3 solid solutions at various x has also been described by the correlation length and correlation time. As expected for the ferroelectric-relaxor crossover characterized by a progressive increasing degree of disorder, local fluctuations cause a reducing correlation time when the substitution degree increases, at a given temperature. The correlation time around the Curie temperature increases, reflecting the increasing stability in time of some polar nanoregions in relaxors in comparison with ferroelectrics, which was experimentally proved in

Appearance of ferroelectricity by suppressing superconductivity in nanoparticle dispersed glassy precursor for high Tc superconductor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mukherjee, Soma; Chaudhuri, B.K.; Sakata, H.

2003-01-01

The multicomponent Bi 1.8 Pb 0.3 Sr 2 Ca 2 Cu 2.8 K 0.2 O δ (FG) glass is found to show ferroelectric (FE) transition around T fc = 530K. Microstructural (TEM) studies of these glasses indicated the presence of nano-crystalline particles/ clusters (∼10-30 nm size). In this glass-nanoparticle composite (GNC), presence of ferroelectric nano-particles/ islands is considered to be responsible for the FE behavior. The K-free FG type glasses showing no dielectric anomaly (or ferroelectricity) are precursors of high T c superconductors which become superconductors (T c ∼80K) by annealing around 840 degC. The K-doped (FG) GNC is, however, not superconducting in the corresponding annealed phase which indicates suppression of superconductivity due to the presence of K or by the appearance of ferroelectricity. Transport and dielectric properties of both K doped and undoped GNC have been studied and they are found to be semiconducting and follow non-adiabatic small polaron hopping conduction mechanism. (author)

Ba-DOPED ZnO MATERIALS: A DFT SIMULATION TO INVESTIGATE THE DOPING EFFECT ON FERROELECTRICITY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luis H. da S. Lacerda

2016-04-01

Full Text Available ZnO is a semiconductor material largely employed in the development of several electronic and optical devices due to its unique electronic, optical, piezo-, ferroelectric and structural properties. This study evaluates the properties of Ba-doped wurtzite-ZnO using quantum mechanical simulations based on the Density Functional Theory (DFT allied to hybrid functional B3LYP. The Ba-doping caused increase in lattice parameters and slight distortions at the unit cell angle in a wurtzite structure. In addition, the doping process presented decrease in the band-gap (Eg at low percentages suggesting band-gap engineering. For low doping amounts, the wavelength characteristic was observed in the visible range; whereas, for middle and high doping amounts, the wavelength belongs to the Ultraviolet range. The Ba atoms also influence the ferroelectric property, which is improved linearly with the doping amount, except for doping at 100% or wurtzite-BaO. The ferroelectric results indicate the ZnO:Ba is an strong option to replace perovskite materials in ferroelectric and flash-type memory devices.

Broadband enhancement of photoluminance from colloidal metal halide perovskite nanocrystals on plasmonic nanostructured surfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Si; Liang, Yuzhang; Jing, Qiang; Lu, Zhenda; Lu, Yanqing; Xu, Ting

2017-11-07

Metal halide perovskite nanocrystals (NCs) as a new kind of promising optoelectronic material have attracted wide attention due to their high photoluminescence (PL) quantum yield, narrow emission linewidth and wideband color tunability. Since the PL intensity always has a direct influence on the performance of optoelectronic devices, it is of vital importance to improve the perovskite NCs' fluorescence emission efficiency. Here, we synthesize three inorganic perovskite NCs and experimentally demonstrate a broadband fluorescence enhancement of perovskite NCs by exploiting plasmonic nanostructured surface consisting of nanogrooves array. The strong near-field optical localization associated with surface plasmon polariton-coupled emission effect generated by the nanogrooves array can significantly boost the absorption of perovskite NCs and tailor the fluorescence emissions. As a result, the PL intensities of perovskite NCs are broadband enhanced with a maximum factor higher than 8-fold achieved in experimental demonstration. Moreover, the high efficiency PL of perovskite NCs embedded in the polymer matrix layer on the top of plasmonic nanostructured surface can be maintained for more than three weeks. These results imply that plasmonic nanostructured surface is a good candidate to stably broadband enhance the PL intensity of perovskite NCs and further promote their potentials in the application of visible-light-emitting devices.

Ferroelectric properties of full plasma-enhanced ALD TiN/La:HfO{sub 2}/TiN stacks

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chernikova, A. G.; Kuzmichev, D. S.; Negrov, D. V.; Kozodaev, M. G.; Markeev, A. M. [Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, Institutskii per. 9, 141700 Dolgoprudny, Moscow Region (Russian Federation); Polyakov, S. N. [Technological Institute for Superhard and Novel Carbon Materials, Tsentral' naya Str. 7a, 142190 Troitsk, Moscow (Russian Federation)

2016-06-13

We report the possibility of employment of low temperature (≤330 °C) plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition for the formation of both electrodes and hafnium-oxide based ferroelectric in the metal-insulator-metal structures. The structural and ferroelectric properties of La doped HfO{sub 2}-based layers and its evolution with the change of both La content (2.1, 3.7 and 5.8 at. %) and the temperature of the rapid thermal processing (550–750 °C) were investigated in detail. Ferroelectric properties emerged only for 2.1 and 3.7 at. % of La due to the structural changes caused by the given doping levels. Ferroelectric properties were also found to depend strongly on annealing temperature, with the most robust ferroelectric response for lowest La concentration and intermediate 650 °C annealing temperature. The long term wake-up effect and such promising endurance characteristics as 3 × 10{sup 8} switches by bipolar voltage cycles with 30 μs duration and ± 3 MV/cm amplitude without any decrease of remnant polarization value were demonstrated.

Polyaniline-Cadmium Ferrite Nanostructured Composite for Room-Temperature Liquefied Petroleum Gas Sensing

Science.gov (United States)

Kotresh, S.; Ravikiran, Y. T.; Tiwari, S. K.; Vijaya Kumari, S. C.

2017-08-01

We introduce polyaniline-cadmium ferrite (PANI-CdFe2O4) nanostructured composite as a room-temperature-operable liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) sensor. The structure of PANI and the composite prepared by chemical polymerization was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, x-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, and field-emission scanning electron microscopy. Comparative XRD and FT-IR analysis confirmed CdFe2O4 embedded in PANI matrix with mutual interfacial interaction. The nanostructure of the composite was confirmed by transmission electron microscopy. A simple LPG sensor operable at room temperature, exclusively based on spin-coated PANI-CdFe2O4 nanocomposite, was fabricated with maximum sensing response of 50.83% at 1000 ppm LPG. The response and recovery time of the sensor were 50 s and 110 s, respectively, and it was stable over a period of 1 month with slight degradation of 4%. The sensing mechanism is discussed on the basis of the p- n heterojunction barrier formed at the interface of PANI and CdFe2O4.

Hysteresis loop behaviors of ferroelectric thin films: A Monte Carlo simulation study

Science.gov (United States)

M. Bedoya-Hincapié, C.; H. Ortiz-Álvarez, H.; Restrepo-Parra, E.; J. Olaya-Flórez, J.; E. Alfonso, J.

2015-11-01

The ferroelectric response of bismuth titanate Bi4Ti3O12 (BIT) thin film is studied through a Monte Carlo simulation of hysteresis loops. The ferroelectric system is described by using a Diffour Hamiltonian with three terms: the electric field applied in the z direction, the nearest dipole-dipole interaction in the transversal (x-y) direction, and the nearest dipole-dipole interaction in the direction perpendicular to the thin film (the z axis). In the sample construction, we take into consideration the dipole orientations of the monoclinic and orthorhombic structures that can appear in BIT at low temperature in the ferroelectric state. The effects of temperature, stress, and the concentration of pinned dipole defects are assessed by using the hysteresis loops. The results indicate the changes in the hysteresis area with temperature and stress, and the asymmetric hysteresis loops exhibit evidence of the imprint failure mechanism with the emergence of pinned dipolar defects. The simulated shift in the hysteresis loops conforms to the experimental ferroelectric response. Project sponsored by the research departments of the Universidad Nacional de Colombia DIMA and DIB under Project 201010018227-“Crecimiento y caracterización eléctrica y estructural de películas delgadas de BixTiyOz producidas mediante Magnetrón Sputtering” and Project 12920-“Desarrollo teóricoexperimental de nanoestructuras basadas en Bismuto y materiales similares” and “Bisnano Project.”

Injection moulding antireflective nanostructures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christiansen, Alexander Bruun; Clausen, Jeppe Sandvik; Mortensen, N. Asger

2014-01-01

We present a method for injection moulding antireflective nanostructures on large areas, for high volume production. Nanostructured black silicon masters were fabricated by mask-less reactive ion etching, and electroplated with nickel. The nickel shim was antistiction coated and used in an inject......We present a method for injection moulding antireflective nanostructures on large areas, for high volume production. Nanostructured black silicon masters were fabricated by mask-less reactive ion etching, and electroplated with nickel. The nickel shim was antistiction coated and used...

Injection moulding antireflective nanostructures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christiansen, Alexander Bruun; Clausen, Jeppe Sandvik; Mortensen, N. Asger

We present a method for injection moulding antireflective nanostructures on large areas, for high volume production. Nanostructured black silicon masters were fabricated by mask-less reactive ion etching, and electroplated with nickel. The nickel shim was antistiction coated and used in an inject......We present a method for injection moulding antireflective nanostructures on large areas, for high volume production. Nanostructured black silicon masters were fabricated by mask-less reactive ion etching, and electroplated with nickel. The nickel shim was antistiction coated and used...

Preparation and properties of novel magnetic composite nanostructures: Arrays of nanowires in porous membranes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vazquez, M.; Hernandez-Velez, M.; Asenjo, A.; Navas, D.; Pirota, K.; Prida, V.; Sanchez, O.; Baldonedo, J.L.

2006-01-01

In the present work, we introduce our latest achievements in the development of novel highly ordered composite magnetic nanostructures employing anodized nanoporous membranes as precursor templates where long-range hexagonal symmetry is induced by self-assembling during anodization process. Subsequent processing as electroplating, sputtering or pressing are employed to prepare arrays of metallic, semiconductor or polymeric nanowires embedded in oxide or metallic membranes. Particular attention is paid to recent results on controlling the magnetic anisotropy in arrays of metallic nanowires, particularly Co, and nanohole arrays in Ni membranes

High temperature phases in PZT ferroelectric films

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Deineka, Alexander; Suchaneck, G.; Jastrabík, Lubomír; Gerlach, G.

2003-01-01

Roč. 293, - (2003), s. 111-118 ISSN 0015-0193 R&D Projects: GA ČR GP202/02/D078; GA MŠk LN00A015 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z1010914 Keywords : ferroelectric film * phase transition * film profile Subject RIV: BM - Solid Matter Physics ; Magnetism Impact factor: 0.406, year: 2003

Nano-Gap Embedded Plasmonic Gratings for Surface Plasmon Enhanced Fluorescence

Science.gov (United States)

Bhatnagar, Kunal; Bok, Sangho; Korampally, Venumadhav; Gangopadhyay, Shubhra

2012-02-01

Plasmonic nanostructures have been extensively used in the past few decades for applications in sub-wavelength optics, data storage, optoelectronic circuits, microscopy and bio-photonics. The enhanced electromagnetic field produced at the metal/dielectric interface by the excitation of surface plasmons via incident radiation can be used for signal enhancement in fluorescence and surface enhanced Raman scattering studies. Novel plasmonic structures on the sub wavelength scale have been shown to provide very efficient and extreme light concentration at the nano-scale. The enhanced electric field produced within a few hundred nanometers of these structures can be used to excite fluorophores in the surrounding environment. Fluorescence based bio-detection and bio-imaging are two of the most important tools in the life sciences. Improving the qualities and capabilities of fluorescence based detectors and imaging equipment has been a big challenge to the industry manufacturers. We report the novel fabrication of nano-gap embedded periodic grating substrates on the nanoscale using micro-contact printing and polymethylsilsesquioxane (PMSSQ) polymer. Fluorescence enhancement of up to 118 times was observed with these silver nanostructures in conjugation with Rhodamine-590 fluorescent dye. These substrates are ideal candidates for low-level fluorescence detection and single molecule imaging.

TiO2/carbon nanotube hybrid nanostructures: Solvothermal synthesis and their visible light photocatalytic activity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tian Lihong; Ye Liqun; Deng Kejian; Zan Ling

2011-01-01

MWCNT/TiO 2 hybrid nanostructures were prepared via solvothermal synthesis and sol-gel method with benzyl alcohol as a surfactant. As-prepared hybrid materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The results showed that MWCNTs were uniformly decorated with anatase nanocrystals in solvothermal condition, but MWCNTs were embedded in a majority of TiO 2 nanoparticles by sol-gel method. When the weight ratio of MWCNTs to TiO 2 was 20%, MWCNT/TiO 2 hybrid nanostructures prepared by solvothermal synthesis exhibited higher visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity than that prepared by sol-gel method. Post-annealing of MWCNT/TiO 2 nanostructures at 400 deg. C resulted in the formation of the carbonaceous Ti-C bonds on the interface between TiO 2 and MWCNTs, which enhanced the photoabsorbance of the hybrid materials in the visible light region and improved the visible-light degradation efficiency of methylene blue. - Graphical abstract: MWCNT/TiO 2 nanostructures have been prepared by solvothermal method, which exhibited higher visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity than that prepared by sol-gel method. The carbonaceous Ti-C bonds on the interface between TiO 2 and MWCNTs enhanced the photoabsorbance of the hybrid materials in the visible light region. Highlights: → Anatase TiO 2 nanoparticles were anchored on CNTs surface uniformly via solvothermal method → The morphology facilitated the electron transfer between CNTs and TiO 2 → Ti-C bonds extended the absorption of MWCNT/TiO 2 to the whole visible light region. → The hybrid nanostructures showed enhanced visible-light induced photocatalytic activity.

III-nitride integration on ferroelectric materials of lithium niobate by molecular beam epitaxy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Namkoong, Gon; Lee, Kyoung-Keun; Madison, Shannon M.; Henderson, Walter; Ralph, Stephen E.; Doolittle, W. Alan

2005-01-01

Integration of III-nitride electrical devices on the ferroelectric material lithium niobate (LiNbO 3 ) has been demonstrated. As a ferroelectric material, lithium niobate has a polarization which may provide excellent control of the polarity of III-nitrides. However, while high temperature, 1000 deg. C, thermal treatments produce atomically smooth surfaces, improving adhesion of GaN epitaxial layers on lithium niobate, repolarization of the substrate in local domains occurs. These effects result in multi domains of mixed polarization in LiNbO 3 , producing inversion domains in subsequent GaN epilayers. However, it is found that AlN buffer layers suppress inversion domains of III-nitrides. Therefore, two-dimensional electron gases in AlGaN/GaN heterojunction structures are obtained. Herein, the demonstration of the monolithic integration of high power devices with ferroelectric materials presents possibilities to control LiNbO 3 modulators on compact optoelectronic/electronic chips

Ferroelectric and incipient ferroelectric properties of a novel Sr.sub.9-x./sub.Pb.sub.x./sub.Ce.sub.2./sub.Ti.sub.12./sub.O.sub.36./sub. (x=0-9) ceramic system

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Kamba, Stanislav; Savinov, Maxim; Laufek, F.; Tkáč, O.; Kadlec, Christelle; Veljko, Sergiy; John, E.V.; Subodh, G.; Sebastian, M. T.; Klementová, Mariana; Bovtun, Viktor; Pokorný, Jan; Goian, Veronica; Petzelt, Jan

2009-01-01

Roč. 21, č. 5 (2009), s. 811-819 ISSN 0897-4756 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA202/06/0403 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z10100520 Keywords : ferroelectrics * crystal structure * incipient ferroelectrics * soft mode Subject RIV: BM - Solid Matter Physics ; Magnetism Impact factor: 5.368, year: 2009 http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/cm803058q

HRTEM analysis on nanocrystalline BaTiO3 and PbTiO3: size effects on ferroelectric phase transition temperature

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bursill, L.A.; Jiang, B.; Peng, J.L.; Zhong, W.L.; Zhang, P.L.

1997-01-01

High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopic studies of nanocrystaline particles of BaTiO 3 and PbTiO 3 are reported. There are characteristic differences observed for BaTiO 3 prepared using sol gel (SG) and steric acid gel (SAG) methods. The former exhibit a critical size below which there is no paraelectric/ferroelectric phase transition, whereas BaTiO 3 prepared via the SAG route remained cubic for all conditions. The SAG preparations always showed chemical intergrowth defects whereas the SG preparations were single phase. Atomic resolution images of both varieties showed interesting surface steps and surface relaxations/reconstructions of some facets. Nanocrystalline PbTiO 3 prepared by the SG route remains tetragonal, albeit with decreasing c/a ratio, down to 25nm diameter. HRTEM observations of nanocrystalline PbTiO 3 are also presented. X-ray diffraction, dielectric and Raman scattering measurements also demonstrate pronounced size effects. The relationship between the observed nanostructures and size effects on the physical properties is discussed. 6 refs., 1 tab., 6 figs

Observation of domain patterns on a ferroelectric ceramic

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ibrahim, R.C.; Zavaglia, C.A.C.

1992-01-01

In this work ferroelectric domain patterns are observed on a PZT-like ceramic material produced in Brazil. This material has tetragonal unit cell composing a perovskite type structure. The samples, after grinding and polishing, were chemically etched and observed on optical microscope and scanning electron microscope. (author)

Self-assembled nanostructures

CERN Document Server

Zhang, Jin Z; Liu, Jun; Chen, Shaowei; Liu, Gang-yu

2003-01-01

Nanostructures refer to materials that have relevant dimensions on the nanometer length scales and reside in the mesoscopic regime between isolated atoms and molecules in bulk matter. These materials have unique physical properties that are distinctly different from bulk materials. Self-Assembled Nanostructures provides systematic coverage of basic nanomaterials science including materials assembly and synthesis, characterization, and application. Suitable for both beginners and experts, it balances the chemistry aspects of nanomaterials with physical principles. It also highlights nanomaterial-based architectures including assembled or self-assembled systems. Filled with in-depth discussion of important applications of nano-architectures as well as potential applications ranging from physical to chemical and biological systems, Self-Assembled Nanostructures is the essential reference or text for scientists involved with nanostructures.

Characterization of current transport in ferroelectric polymer devices

KAUST Repository

Hanna, Amir

2014-01-01

We report the charge injection characteristics in poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene), P(VDF-TrFE), as a function of electrode material in metal/ferroelectric/metal device structures. Symmetric and asymmetric devices with Al, Ag, Au and Pt electrodes were fabricated to determine the dominant carrier type, injection current density, and to propose transport mechanisms in the ferroelectric polymer. Higher work function metals such as Pt are found to inject less charges compared to lower work function metals, implying n-type conduction behavior for P(VDF-TrFE) with electrons as the dominant injected carrier. Two distinct charge transport regimes were identified in the P(VDF-TrFE) devices; a Schottky-limited conduction regime for low to intermediate fields (E < 20 MV/m), and a space-charge limited conduction (SCLC) regime for high fields (20 < E < 120 MV/m). Implication of these results for degradation in P(VDF-TrFE) memory performance are discussed. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Integration of SrBi2Ta2O9 thin films for high density ferroelectric random access memory

Science.gov (United States)

Wouters, D. J.; Maes, D.; Goux, L.; Lisoni, J. G.; Paraschiv, V.; Johnson, J. A.; Schwitters, M.; Everaert, J.-L.; Boullart, W.; Schaekers, M.; Willegems, M.; Vander Meeren, H.; Haspeslagh, L.; Artoni, C.; Caputa, C.; Casella, P.; Corallo, G.; Russo, G.; Zambrano, R.; Monchoix, H.; Vecchio, G.; Van Autryve, L.

2006-09-01

Ferroelectric random access memory (FeRAM) is an attractive candidate technology for embedded nonvolatile memory, especially in applications where low power and high program speed are important. Market introduction of high-density FeRAM is, however, lagging behind standard complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) because of the difficult integration technology. This paper discusses the major integration issues for high-density FeRAM, based on SrBi2Ta2O9 (strontium bismuth tantalate or SBT), in relation to the fabrication of our stacked cell structure. We have worked in the previous years on the development of SBT-FeRAM integration technology, based on a so-called pseudo-three-dimensional (3D) cell, with a capacitor that can be scaled from quasi two-dimensional towards a true three-dimensional capacitor where the sidewalls will importantly contribute to the signal. In the first phase of our integration development, we integrated our FeRAM cell in a 0.35μm CMOS technology. In a second phase, then, possibility of scaling of our cell is demonstrated in 0.18μm technology. The excellent electrical and reliability properties of the small integrated ferroelectric capacitors prove the feasibility of the technology, while the verification of the potential 3D effect confirms the basic scaling potential of our concept beyond that of the single-mask capacitor. The paper outlines the different material and technological challenges, and working solutions are demonstrated. While some issues are specific to our own cell, many are applicable to different stacked FeRAM cell concepts, or will become more general concerns when more developments are moving into 3D structures.

Structural contribution to the ferroelectric fatigue in lead zirconate titanate ceramics

Science.gov (United States)

Hinterstein, M.; Rouquette, J.; Haines, J.; Papet, Ph.; Glaum, J.; Knapp, M.; Eckert, J.; Hoffman, M.

2014-09-01

Many ferroelectric devices are based on doped lead zirconate titanate (PZT) ceramics with compositions near the morphotropic phase boundary (MPB), at which the relevant material's properties approach their maximum. Based on a synchrotron x-ray diffraction study of MPB PZT, bulk fatigue is unambiguously found to arise from a less effective field induced tetragonal-to-monoclinic transformation, at which the degradation of the polarization flipping is detected by a less intense and more diffuse anomaly in the atomic displacement parameter of lead. The time dependence of the ferroelectric response on a structural level down to 250 μs confirms this interpretation in the time scale of the piezolectric strain response.

Doped polymer electrodes for high performance ferroelectric capacitors on plastic substrates

KAUST Repository

Khan, M. A.

2012-10-03

Flexible ferroelectric capacitors with doped polymer electrodes have been fabricated on plastic substrates with performance as good as metal electrodes. The effect of doping on the morphology of polymer electrodes and its impact on device performance have been studied. Improved fatigue characteristics using doped and undoped poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) electrodes versus metal electrodes are observed. It is shown that the polymer electrodes follow classical ferroelectric and dielectric responses, including series resistance effects. The improved device characteristics obtained using highly conducting doped PEDOT:PSS suggest that it may be used both as an electrode and as global interconnect for all-polymer transparent circuits on flexible substrates.

Non-volatile memory based on the ferroelectric photovoltaic effect

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Rui; You, Lu; Zhou, Yang; Shiuh Lim, Zhi; Zou, Xi; Chen, Lang; Ramesh, R.; Wang, Junling

2013-01-01

The quest for a solid state universal memory with high-storage density, high read/write speed, random access and non-volatility has triggered intense research into new materials and novel device architectures. Though the non-volatile memory market is dominated by flash memory now, it has very low operation speed with ~10 μs programming and ~10 ms erasing time. Furthermore, it can only withstand ~105 rewriting cycles, which prevents it from becoming the universal memory. Here we demonstrate that the significant photovoltaic effect of a ferroelectric material, such as BiFeO3 with a band gap in the visible range, can be used to sense the polarization direction non-destructively in a ferroelectric memory. A prototype 16-cell memory based on the cross-bar architecture has been prepared and tested, demonstrating the feasibility of this technique. PMID:23756366

Determination of the Steady State Leakage Current in Structures with Ferroelectric Ceramic Films

Science.gov (United States)

Podgornyi, Yu. V.; Vorotilov, K. A.; Sigov, A. S.

2018-03-01

Steady state leakage currents have been investigated in capacitor structures with ferroelectric solgel films of lead zirconate titanate (PZT) formed on silicon substrates with a lower Pt electrode. It is established that Pt/PZT/Hg structures, regardless of the PZT film thickness, are characterized by the presence of a rectifying contact similar to p-n junction. The steady state leakage current in the forward direction increases with a decrease in the film thickness and is determined by the ferroelectric bulk conductivity.

Band gap engineering strategy via polarization rotation in perovskite ferroelectrics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Fenggong; Grinberg, Ilya; Rappe, Andrew M.

2014-01-01

We propose a strategy to engineer the band gaps of perovskite oxide ferroelectrics, supported by first principles calculations. We find that the band gaps of perovskites can be substantially reduced by as much as 1.2 eV through local rhombohedral-to-tetragonal structural transition. Furthermore, the strong polarization of the rhombohedral perovskite is largely preserved by its tetragonal counterpart. The B-cation off-center displacements and the resulting enhancement of the antibonding character in the conduction band give rise to the wider band gaps of the rhombohedral perovskites. The correlation between the structure, polarization orientation, and electronic structure lays a good foundation for understanding the physics of more complex perovskite solid solutions and provides a route for the design of photovoltaic perovskite ferroelectrics

High refractive index modification of SiO2 created by femtosecond laser nanostructuring

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barillot, T; Grojo, D; Gertsvolf, M; Rayner, D M; Corkum, P B; Lei, S

2010-01-01

By comparing simulations with experiment, we show that the effective refractive index of fused SiO 2 can be locally reduced by (1.8 ± 0.2)% by femtosecond laser nanostructuring. We create a microlens of material containing a planar array of nanocracks embedded inside fused silica and probe how it refracts or absorbs light as a function of pulse energy. The self-generated microlens lowers the peak light intensity by deflecting the light around the focus. We obtain the refractive index by simulating the beam transport using the 3D wave equation in conjunction with the measured dimensions of the modified material.

Role of oxygen disorder in the ferroelectric phase transitions for various materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pasciak, Marek; Goossens, Darren J.; Welberry, Richard T.

2009-01-01

Full text: The nature of ferroelectric phase transitions in many materials have been questioned for many years. Whereas some methods provide definitive evidence of mode softening, other methods, such as local structure probes, indicate the existence of disorder in the paraelectric phase [1]. It is now widely accepted, that the ferroelectric phase transition usually has two components - soft-mode displacive and order-disorder. The latter leads inevitably to some form of pretransitional clusters in the paraelectric phase [2]. In relaxor ferroelectrics, in which disorder drives the transformation, such polar clusters can exist over a wide range of temperatures. Diffuse scattering is a powerful tool for studying such disorder and also for studying short-range order correlations in atomic displacements [3]. In this work we concentrate on the role of oxygens in various materials. By different means of molecular simulations we build models in which the oxygens constitute a framework for short range order correlations. This leads to a discussion of the differences between x-ray and neutron diffuse scattering patterns that may arise due to the disorder of oxygens.

Programmable ferroelectric tunnel memristor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andy eQuindeau

2014-02-01

Full Text Available We report an analogously programmable memristor based on genuine electronic resistive switching combining ferroelectric switching and electron tunneling. The tunnel current through an 8 unit cell thick epitaxial Pb(Zr[0.2]Ti[0.8]O[3] film sandwiched between La[0.7]Sr[0.3]MnO[3] and cobalt electrodes obeys the Kolmogorov-Avrami-Ishibashi model for bidimensional growth with a characteristic switching time in the order of 10^-7 seconds. The analytical description of switching kinetics allows us to develop a characteristic transfer function that has only one parameter viz. the characteristic switching time and fully predicts the resistive states of this type of memristor.

Low frequency modelling of hysteresis behaviour and dielectric permittivity in ferroelectric ceramics under electric field

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ducharne, B; Guyomar, D; Sebald, G

2007-01-01

The properties of ferroelectric ceramics strongly depend on the electromechanical loading and their measurement conditions. In this paper, a nonlinear phenomenological one-dimensional model based on the dry friction concept is presented to describe the hysteretic polarization behaviour. Dielectric permittivities versus dc electric field (or capacitance C versus voltage V) loops are determined for the characterization of ferroelectric material. The ε 33 coefficient is used for the ceramic characterization because it is strongly correlated with the ceramic quality. The purpose of this paper is to develop a model of reversal polarization behaviour close to physical realities, able to provide good performances on the simulation of dielectric permittivity loop ε 33 (E dc ). Simulated behaviours are finally compared with experimental results on a typically soft PZT ferroelectric ceramic

Fringing field effects in negative capacitance field-effect transistors with a ferroelectric gate insulator

Science.gov (United States)

Hattori, Junichi; Fukuda, Koichi; Ikegami, Tsutomu; Ota, Hiroyuki; Migita, Shinji; Asai, Hidehiro; Toriumi, Akira

2018-04-01

We study the effects of fringing electric fields on the behavior of negative-capacitance (NC) field-effect transistors (FETs) with a silicon-on-insulator body and a gate stack consisting of an oxide film, an internal metal film, a ferroelectric film, and a gate electrode using our own device simulator that can properly handle the complicated relationship between the polarization and the electric field in ferroelectric materials. The behaviors of such NC FETs and the corresponding metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) FETs are simulated and compared with each other to evaluate the effects of the NC of the ferroelectric film. Then, the fringing field effects are evaluated by comparing the NC effects in NC FETs with and without gate spacers. The fringing field between the gate stack, especially the internal metal film, and the source/drain region induces more charges at the interface of the film with the ferroelectric film. Accordingly, the function of the NC to modulate the gate voltage and the resulting function to improve the subthreshold swing are enhanced. We also investigate the relationships of these fringing field effects to the drain voltage and four design parameters of NC FETs, i.e., gate length, gate spacer permittivity, internal metal film thickness, and oxide film thickness.

Room temperature p-type conductivity and coexistence of ferroelectric order in ferromagnetic Li doped ZnO nanoparticles

KAUST Repository

Awan, Saif Ullah; Hasanain, S. K.; Anjum, Dalaver H.; Awan, M. S.; Shah, Saqlain A.

2014-01-01

for long range order ferromagnetic coupling in Li doped samples. Room temperature ferroelectric hysteresis loops were observed in 8% and 10% Li doped samples. We demonstrated ferroelectric coercivity (remnant polarization) 2.5kV/cm (0.11 μC/cm2) and 2.8k

Electron emission and plasma generation in a modulator electron gun using ferroelectric cathode

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen Shutao; Zheng Shuxin; Zhu Ziqiu; Dong Xianlin; Tang Chuanxiang

2006-01-01

Strong electron emission and dense plasma generation have been observed in a modulator electron gun with a Ba 0.67 Sr 0.33 TiO 3 ferroelectric cathode. Parameter of the modulator electron gun and lifetime of the ferroelectric cathode were investigated. It was shown that electron emission from Ba 0.67 Sr 0.33 TiO 3 cathode with a positive triggering pulse is a sort of plasma emission. Electrons were emitted by the co-effect of surface plasma and non-compensated negative polarization charges at the surface of the ferroelectric. The element analyses of the graphite collector after emission process was performed to show the ingredient of the plasma consist of Ba, Ti and Cu heavy cations of the ceramic compound and electrode. It was demonstrated the validity of the Child-Langmuir law by introducing the decrease of vacuum gap and increase of emission area caused by the expansion of the surface plasma

Ferroelectric Polarization Switching Dynamics and Domain Growth of Triglycine Sulfate and Imidazolium Perchlorate

KAUST Repository

Ma, He

2016-04-10

The weak bond energy and large anisotropic domain wall energy induce many special characteristics of the domain nucleation, growth, and polarization switch in triglycine sulfate (TGS) and imidazolium perchlorate (IM), two typical molecular ferroelectrics. Their domain nucleation and polarization switch are rather slower than those of conventional oxide ferroelectrics, which may be due to the weaker bond energy of hydrogen bond or van der Waals bond than that of ionic bond. These chemical bonds dominate the elastic energy, with the latter being an important component of domain wall energy and playing an important role in domain nucleation and domain growth. The ratio of anisotropic domain wall energy to Gibbs free energy is large in TGS and IM, which allows a favorable domain shape and a special domain evolution under a certain electric field. Therefore, this study not only sheds light on the physical nature but also indicates the application direction for molecular ferroelectrics. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim

Giant quadratic electro-optical effect during polarization switching in ultrathin ferroelectric polymer films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Blinov, L. M., E-mail: lev39blinov@gmail.com; Lazarev, V V; Palto, S P; Yudin, S G [Russian Academy of Sciences, Shubnikov Institute of Crystallography (Russian Federation)

2012-04-15

The low-frequency quadratic electro-optical effect with a maximum electro-optical coefficient of g = 8 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -19} m{sup 2}/V{sup 2} (i.e., four orders of magnitude greater than the standard high-frequency value) has been studied in thin films of ferroelectric polymer PVDF(70%)-TrFE(30%). The observed effect is related to the process of spontaneous polarization switching, during which the electron oscillators of C-F and C-H dipole groups rotate to become parallel to the applied field. As a result, the ellipsoid of the refractive index exhibits narrowing in the direction perpendicular to the field. The field dependence of the electro-optical coefficient g correlates with that of the apparent dielectric permittivity, which can be introduced under the condition of ferroelectric polarization switching. The observed electro-optical effect strongly decreases when the frequency increases up to several hundred hertz. The temperature dependence of the effect exhibits clearly pronounced hysteresis in the region of the ferroelectric phase transition.

Boost Up Carrier Mobility for Ferroelectric Organic Transistor Memory via Buffering Interfacial Polarization Fluctuation

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Huabin; Wang, Qijing; Li, Yun; Lin, Yen-Fu; Wang, Yu; Yin, Yao; Xu, Yong; Liu, Chuan; Tsukagoshi, Kazuhito; Pan, Lijia; Wang, Xizhang; Hu, Zheng; Shi, Yi

2014-11-01

Ferroelectric organic field-effect transistors (Fe-OFETs) have been attractive for a variety of non-volatile memory device applications. One of the critical issues of Fe-OFETs is the improvement of carrier mobility in semiconducting channels. In this article, we propose a novel interfacial buffering method that inserts an ultrathin poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) between ferroelectric polymer and organic semiconductor layers. A high field-effect mobility (μFET) up to 4.6 cm2 V-1 s-1 is obtained. Subsequently, the programming process in our Fe-OFETs is mainly dominated by the switching between two ferroelectric polarizations rather than by the mobility-determined charge accumulation at the channel. Thus, the ``reading'' and ``programming'' speeds are significantly improved. Investigations show that the polarization fluctuation at semiconductor/insulator interfaces, which affect the charge transport in conducting channels, can be suppressed effectively using our method.

Homo-junction ferroelectric field-effect-transistor memory device using solution-processed lithium-doped zinc oxide thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Nayak, Pradipta K.; Caraveo-Frescas, J. A.; Bhansali, Unnat. S.; Alshareef, H. N.

2012-06-01

High performance homo-junction field-effect transistor memory devices were prepared using solution processed transparent lithium-doped zinc oxide thin films for both the ferroelectric and semiconducting active layers. A highest field-effect mobility of 8.7 cm2/Vs was obtained along with an Ion/Ioff ratio of 106. The ferroelectric thin film transistors showed a low sub-threshold swing value of 0.19 V/dec and a significantly reduced device operating voltage (±4 V) compared to the reported hetero-junction ferroelectric transistors, which is very promising for low-power non-volatile memory applications.

Embedded Systems

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Embedded system, micro-con- troller ... Embedded systems differ from general purpose computers in many ... Low cost: As embedded systems are extensively used in con- .... operating systems for the desktop computers where scheduling.

Epitaxial growth of hybrid nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Tan, Chaoliang; Chen, Junze; Wu, Xue-Jun; Zhang, Hua

2018-02-01

Hybrid nanostructures are a class of materials that are typically composed of two or more different components, in which each component has at least one dimension on the nanoscale. The rational design and controlled synthesis of hybrid nanostructures are of great importance in enabling the fine tuning of their properties and functions. Epitaxial growth is a promising approach to the controlled synthesis of hybrid nanostructures with desired structures, crystal phases, exposed facets and/or interfaces. This Review provides a critical summary of the state of the art in the field of epitaxial growth of hybrid nanostructures. We discuss the historical development, architectures and compositions, epitaxy methods, characterization techniques and advantages of epitaxial hybrid nanostructures. Finally, we provide insight into future research directions in this area, which include the epitaxial growth of hybrid nanostructures from a wider range of materials, the study of the underlying mechanism and determining the role of epitaxial growth in influencing the properties and application performance of hybrid nanostructures.

Sensitivity Enhancement in Magnetic Sensors Based on Ferroelectric-Bimorphs and Multiferroic Composites

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gollapudi Sreenivasulu

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Multiferroic composites with ferromagnetic and ferroelectric phases have been studied in recent years for use as sensors of AC and DC magnetic fields. Their operation is based on magneto-electric (ME coupling between the electric and magnetic subsystems and is mediated by mechanical strain. Such sensors for AC magnetic fields require a bias magnetic field to achieve pT-sensitivity. Novel magnetic sensors with a permanent magnet proof mass, either on a ferroelectric bimorph or a ferromagnetic-ferroelectric composite, are discussed. In both types, the interaction between the applied AC magnetic field and remnant magnetization of the magnet results in a mechanical strain and a voltage response in the ferroelectric. Our studies have been performed on sensors with a Nd-Fe-B permanent magnet proof mass on (i a bimorph of oppositely-poled lead zirconate titanate (PZT platelets and (ii a layered multiferroic composite of PZT-Metglas-Ni. The sensors have been characterized in terms of sensitivity and equivalent magnetic noise N. Noise N in both type of sensors is on the order of 200 pT/√Hz at 1 Hz, a factor of 10 improvement compared to multiferroic sensors without a proof mass. When the AC magnetic field is applied at the bending resonance for the bimorph, the measured N ≈ 700 pT/√Hz. We discuss models based on magneto-electro-mechanical coupling at low frequency and bending resonance in the sensors and theoretical estimates of ME voltage coefficients are in very good agreement with the data.

Sensitivity Enhancement in Magnetic Sensors Based on Ferroelectric-Bimorphs and Multiferroic Composites.

Science.gov (United States)

Sreenivasulu, Gollapudi; Qu, Peng; Petrov, Vladimir; Qu, Hongwei; Srinivasan, Gopalan

2016-02-20

Multiferroic composites with ferromagnetic and ferroelectric phases have been studied in recent years for use as sensors of AC and DC magnetic fields. Their operation is based on magneto-electric (ME) coupling between the electric and magnetic subsystems and is mediated by mechanical strain. Such sensors for AC magnetic fields require a bias magnetic field to achieve pT-sensitivity. Novel magnetic sensors with a permanent magnet proof mass, either on a ferroelectric bimorph or a ferromagnetic-ferroelectric composite, are discussed. In both types, the interaction between the applied AC magnetic field and remnant magnetization of the magnet results in a mechanical strain and a voltage response in the ferroelectric. Our studies have been performed on sensors with a Nd-Fe-B permanent magnet proof mass on (i) a bimorph of oppositely-poled lead zirconate titanate (PZT) platelets and (ii) a layered multiferroic composite of PZT-Metglas-Ni. The sensors have been characterized in terms of sensitivity and equivalent magnetic noise N. Noise N in both type of sensors is on the order of 200 pT/√Hz at 1 Hz, a factor of 10 improvement compared to multiferroic sensors without a proof mass. When the AC magnetic field is applied at the bending resonance for the bimorph, the measured N ≈ 700 pT/√Hz. We discuss models based on magneto-electro-mechanical coupling at low frequency and bending resonance in the sensors and theoretical estimates of ME voltage coefficients are in very good agreement with the data.

Nano-embossing technology on ferroelectric thin film Pb(Zr0.3,Ti0.7O3 for multi-bit storage application

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lu Qian

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract In this work, we apply nano-embossing technique to form a stagger structure in ferroelectric lead zirconate titanate [Pb(Zr0.3, Ti0.7O3 (PZT] films and investigate the ferroelectric and electrical characterizations of the embossed and un-embossed regions, respectively, of the same films by using piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM and Radiant Technologies Precision Material Analyzer. Attributed to the different layer thickness of the patterned ferroelectric thin film, two distinctive coercive voltages have been obtained, thereby, allowing for a single ferroelectric memory cell to contain more than one bit of data.

Characterizing new compositions of [001]C relaxor ferroelectric single crystals using a work-energy model

Science.gov (United States)

Gallagher, John A.

2016-04-01

The desired operating range of ferroelectric materials with compositions near the morphotropic phase boundary is limited by field induced phase transformations. In [001]C cut and poled relaxor ferroelectric single crystals the mechanically driven ferroelectric rhombohedral to ferroelectric orthorhombic phase transformation is hindered by antagonistic electrical loading. Instability around the phase transformation makes the current experimental technique for characterization of the large field behavior very time consuming. Characterization requires specialized equipment and involves an extensive set of measurements under combined electrical, mechanical, and thermal loads. In this work a mechanism-based model is combined with a more limited set of experiments to obtain the same results. The model utilizes a work-energy criterion that calculates the mechanical work required to induce the transformation and the required electrical work that is removed to reverse the transformation. This is done by defining energy barriers to the transformation. The results of the combined experiment and modeling approach are compared to the fully experimental approach and error is discussed. The model shows excellent predictive capability and is used to substantially reduce the total number of experiments required for characterization. This decreases the time and resources required for characterization of new compositions.

Chemical Synthesis of Porous Barium Titanate Thin Film and Thermal Stabilization of Ferroelectric Phase by Porosity-Induced Strain.

Science.gov (United States)

Suzuki, Norihiro; Osada, Minoru; Billah, Motasim; Bando, Yoshio; Yamauchi, Yusuke; Hossain, Shahriar A

2018-03-27

Barium titanate (BaTiO3, hereafter BT) is an established ferroelectric material first discovered in the 1940s and still widely used because of its well-balanced ferroelectricity, piezoelectricity, and dielectric constant. In addition, BT does not contain any toxic elements. Therefore, it is considered to be an eco-friendly material, which has attracted considerable interest as a replacement for lead zirconate titanate (PZT). However, bulk BT loses its ferroelectricity at approximately 130 °C, thus, it cannot be used at high temperatures. Because of the growing demand for high-temperature ferroelectric materials, it is important to enhance the thermal stability of ferroelectricity in BT. In previous studies, strain originating from the lattice mismatch at hetero-interfaces has been used. However, the sample preparation in this approach requires complicated and expensive physical processes, which are undesirable for practical applications. In this study, we propose a chemical synthesis of a porous material as an alternative means of introducing strain. We synthesized a porous BT thin film using a surfactant-assisted sol-gel method, in which self-assembled amphipathic surfactant micelles were used as an organic template. Through a series of studies, we clarified that the introduction of pores had a similar effect on distorting the BT crystal lattice, to that of a hetero-interface, leading to the enhancement and stabilization of ferroelectricity. Owing to its simplicity and cost effectiveness, this fabrication process has considerable advantages over conventional methods.

Size measurement of gold and silver nanostructures based on their extinction spectrum: limitations and extensions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A A Ashkarran

2013-09-01

Full Text Available  This paper reports on physical principles and the relations between extinction cross section and geometrical properties of silver and gold nanostructures. We introduce some simple relations for determining geometrical properties of silver and gold nanospheres based on the situation of their plasmonic peak. We also applied, investigated and compared the accuracy of these relations using other published works in order to make clear the effects of shape, size distribution and refractive index of particles’ embedding medium. Finally, we extended the equations to non-spherical particles and investigated their accuracy. We found that modified forms of the equations may lead to more exact results for non-spherical metal particles, but for better results, modified equations should depend on shape and size distribution of particles. It seems that these equations are not applicable to particles with corners sharper than cubes' corners i.e. nanostructures with spatial angles less than π/2 sr.

Strain Engineering of Ferroelectric Domains in KxNa1−xNbO3 Epitaxial Layers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jutta Schwarzkopf

2017-08-01

Full Text Available The application of lattice strain through epitaxial growth of oxide films on lattice mismatched perovskite-like substrates strongly influences the structural properties of ferroelectric domains and their corresponding piezoelectric behavior. The formation of different ferroelectric phases can be understood by a strain-phase diagram, which is calculated within the framework of the Landau–Ginzburg–Devonshire theory. In this paper, we illustrate the opportunity of ferroelectric domain engineering in the KxNa1−xNbO3 lead-free material system. In particular, the following examples are discussed in detail: (i Different substrates (NdGaO3, SrTiO3, DyScO3, TbScO3, and GdScO3 are used to systematically tune the incorporated epitaxial strain from compressive to tensile. This can be exploited to adjust the NaNbO3 thin film surface orientation and, concomitantly, the vector of electrical polarization, which rotates from mainly vertical to exclusive in-plane orientation. (ii In ferroelectric NaNbO3, thin films grown on rare-earth scandate substrates, highly regular stripe domain patterns are observed. By using different film thicknesses, these can be tailored with regard to domain periodicity and vertical polarization component. (iii A featured potassium concentration of x = 0.9 of KxNa1−xNbO3 thin films grown on (110 NdScO3 substrates favors the coexistence of two equivalent, monoclinic, but differently oriented ferroelectric phases. A complicated herringbone domain pattern is experimentally observed which consists of alternating MC and a1a2 domains. The coexistence of different types of ferroelectric domains leads to polarization discontinuities at the domain walls, potentially enabling high piezoelectric responses. In each of these examples, the experimental results are in excellent agreement with predictions based on the linear elasticity theory.

Experimental studies on the nonlinear dynamics of ferroelectric thin films and layered ferroelectricum/semiconductor structures in oscillating systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barz, Kay

2010-01-01

In this work experimental techniques for characterization of ferroelectric nm-thin films and ferroelectric/semiconductor structures by means of nonlinear phenomena are discussed. The thin film sample is applied in a series resonant circuit. By recording time series data and amplitude-frequency-characteristics (resonance frequency shift), the nonlinear behavior can be analyzed with respect to the theoretical aspects of these effects in the framework of nonlinear dynamics. The evolving ferroelectric hysteresis is represented by the amplitude-frequency-characteristic in a very detailed form. Interpretations are presented on how transient alterations like fatigue or retention loss, affect the amplitude-frequency-characteristics. Time series analysis allows to separate the specific influence of the nonlinear components and their corresponding time constants. The work closes with suggestions for a systematic application of the presented techniques for an extended characterization of ferroelectric thin films. (orig.)

Conceptualizing Embedded Configuration

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Oddsson, Gudmundur Valur; Hvam, Lars; Lysgaard, Ole

2006-01-01

and services. The general idea can be named embedded configuration. In this article we intend to conceptualize embedded configuration, what it is and is not. The difference between embedded configuration, sales configuration and embedded software is explained. We will look at what is needed to make embedded...... configuration systems. That will include requirements to product modelling techniques. An example with consumer electronics will illuminate the elements of embedded configuration in settings that most can relate to. The question of where embedded configuration would be relevant is discussed, and the current...

Polarization enhancement and ferroelectric switching enabled by interacting magnetic structures in DyMnO3 thin films

KAUST Repository

Lu, Chengliang

2013-12-02

The mutual controls of ferroelectricity and magnetism are stepping towards practical applications proposed for quite a few promising devices in which multiferroic thin films are involved. Although ferroelectricity stemming from specific spiral spin ordering has been reported in highly distorted bulk perovskite manganites, the existence of magnetically induced ferroelectricity in the corresponding thin films remains an unresolved issue, which unfortunately halts this step. In this work, we report magnetically induced electric polarization and its remarkable response to magnetic field (an enhancement of ?800% upon a field of 2 Tesla at 2 K) in DyMnO3 thin films grown on Nb-SrTiO3 substrates. Accompanying with the large polarization enhancement, the ferroelectric coercivity corresponding to the magnetic chirality switching field is significantly increased. A picture based on coupled multicomponent magnetic structures is proposed to understand these features. Moreover, different magnetic anisotropy related to strain-suppressed GdFeO 3-type distortion and Jahn-Teller effect is identified in the films.

Al-, Y-, and La-doping effects favoring intrinsic and field induced ferroelectricity in HfO2: A first principles study

Science.gov (United States)

Materlik, Robin; Künneth, Christopher; Falkowski, Max; Mikolajick, Thomas; Kersch, Alfred

2018-04-01

III-valent dopants have shown to be most effective in stabilizing the ferroelectric, crystalline phase in atomic layer deposited, polycrystalline HfO2 thin films. On the other hand, such dopants are commonly used for tetragonal and cubic phase stabilization in ceramic HfO2. This difference in the impact has not been elucidated so far. The prospect is a suitable doping to produce ferroelectric HfO2 ceramics with a technological impact. In this paper, we investigate the impact of Al, Y, and La doping, which have experimentally proven to stabilize the ferroelectric Pca21 phase in HfO2, in a comprehensive first-principles study. Density functional theory calculations reveal the structure, formation energy, and total energy of various defects in HfO2. Most relevant are substitutional electronically compensated defects without oxygen vacancy, substitutional mixed compensated defects paired with a vacancy, and ionically compensated defect complexes containing two substitutional dopants paired with a vacancy. The ferroelectric phase is strongly favored with La and Y in the substitutional defect. The mixed compensated defect favors the ferroelectric phase as well, but the strongly favored cubic phase limits the concentration range for ferroelectricity. We conclude that a reduction of oxygen vacancies should significantly enhance this range in Y doped HfO2 thin films. With Al, the substitutional defect hardly favors the ferroelectric phase before the tetragonal phase becomes strongly favored with the increasing concentration. This could explain the observed field induced ferroelectricity in Al-doped HfO2. Further Al defects are investigated, but do not favor the f-phase such that the current explanation remains incomplete for Al doping. According to the simulation, doping alone shows clear trends, but is insufficient to replace the monoclinic phase as the ground state. To explain this fact, some other mechanism is needed.

A two-step annealing process for enhancing the ferroelectric properties of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) devices

KAUST Repository

Park, Jihoon

2015-01-01

We report a simple two-step annealing scheme for the fabrication of stable non-volatile memory devices employing poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) polymer thin-films. The proposed two-step annealing scheme comprises the crystallization of the ferroelectric gamma-phase during the first step and enhancement of the PVDF film dense morphology during the second step. Moreover, when we extended the processing time of the second step, we obtained good hysteresis curves down to 1 Hz, the first such report for ferroelectric PVDF films. The PVDF films also exhibit a coercive field of 113 MV m-1 and a ferroelectric polarization of 5.4 μC cm-2. © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2015.

Ultrahigh piezoelectricity in ferroelectric ceramics by design

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Fei; Lin, Dabin; Chen, Zibin; Cheng, Zhenxiang; Wang, Jianli; Li, ChunChun; Xu, Zhuo; Huang, Qianwei; Liao, Xiaozhou; Chen, Long-Qing; Shrout, Thomas R.; Zhang, Shujun

2018-03-01

Piezoelectric materials, which respond mechanically to applied electric field and vice versa, are essential for electromechanical transducers. Previous theoretical analyses have shown that high piezoelectricity in perovskite oxides is associated with a flat thermodynamic energy landscape connecting two or more ferroelectric phases. Here, guided by phenomenological theories and phase-field simulations, we propose an alternative design strategy to commonly used morphotropic phase boundaries to further flatten the energy landscape, by judiciously introducing local structural heterogeneity to manipulate interfacial energies (that is, extra interaction energies, such as electrostatic and elastic energies associated with the interfaces). To validate this, we synthesize rare-earth-doped Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-PbTiO3 (PMN-PT), as rare-earth dopants tend to change the local structure of Pb-based perovskite ferroelectrics. We achieve ultrahigh piezoelectric coefficients d33 of up to 1,500 pC N-1 and dielectric permittivity ɛ33/ɛ0 above 13,000 in a Sm-doped PMN-PT ceramic with a Curie temperature of 89 °C. Our research provides a new paradigm for designing material properties through engineering local structural heterogeneity, expected to benefit a wide range of functional materials.

Effects of Nb doping on the microstructure, ferroelectric and ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

·cm) and the poor piezoelectric performance and weak ferroelectricity are observed after the addition of .... 9.81–13.88% (<15%) and the goodness-of-fit indicator S ..... the Open Project of State Key Laboratory of Electronic Thin. Films and ...

Bidimensional distortion in ferroelectric liquid crystals with strong ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

characterized by bistability and optical memory in the surface-stabilized bookshelf [2,3] ... tic layers, which lies in a plane parallel to the cell walls (see figure 1). Up to now ... Theory. We consider a liquid crystalline material exhibiting ferroelectric phase organized in book- ... By applying an external electric field Eext along.

Transport spin dependent in nanostructures: Current and geometry effect of quantum dots in presence of spin-orbit interaction

Science.gov (United States)

Paredes-Gutiérrez, H.; Pérez-Merchancano, S. T.; Beltran-Rios, C. L.

2017-12-01

In this work, we study the quantum electron transport through a Quantum Dots Structure (QDs), with different geometries, embedded in a Quantum Well (QW). The behaviour of the current through the nanostructure (dot and well) is studied considering the orbital spin coupling of the electrons and the Rashba effect, by means of the second quantization theory and the standard model of Green’s functions. Our results show the behaviour of the current in the quantum system as a function of the electric field, presenting resonant states for specific values of both the external field and the spin polarization. Similarly, the behaviour of the current on the nanostructure changes when the geometry of the QD and the size of the same are modified as a function of the polarization of the electron spin and the potential of quantum confinement.

Synchrotron SAXS Studies of Nanostructured Materials and Colloidal Solutions: A Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Craievich A.F.

2002-01-01

Full Text Available Structural characterisations using the SAXS technique in a number of nanoheterogeneous materials and liquid solutions are reviewed. The studied systems are protein (lysozyme/water solutions, colloidal ZnO particles/water sols, nanoporous NiO-based xerogels, hybrid organic-inorganic siloxane-PEG and PPG nanocomposites and PbTe semiconductor nanocrystals embedded in a glass matrix. These investigations also focus on the transformations of time-varying structures and on structural changes related to variations in temperature and composition. The reviewed investigations aim at explaining the unusual and often interesting properties of nanostructured materials and solutions. Most of the reported studies were carried out using the SAXS beamline at the National Synchrotron Light Laboratory (LNLS, Campinas, Brazil.

Control of analog ferroelectric states by small dc-bias in conjunction with fluctuating waveforms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ricinschi, Dan; Okuyama, Masanori

2009-01-01

In this paper we demonstrate several possibilities to create and control partially switched analog states of ferroelectric materials, from measurements on PZT capacitors. By employing various types of fluctuating waveforms and controlling the domain dynamics with dc bias of small intensities, we have shown that it is possible to generate sequences of analog ferroelectric states that may appear identical from macroscopic measurements, yet they are unique at the local level. The experimental results have been analyzed theoretically by a simple microscopic model of switching. According to the model simulations, each analog state can be associated with a domain structure that captures subtle variations of the previously applied electric field as well as structural information about the inhomogeneities at the local level. The generation and control of such partially switched analog states may be important for new applications of ferroelectric materials to multi-value memories or in the field of artificial intelligence.