Flexoelectricity induced increase of critical thickness in epitaxial ferroelectric thin films

Hao Zhou; Jiawang Hong; Yihui Zhang; Faxin Li; Yongmao Pei; Daining Fang

doi:10.1016/j.physb.2012.04.041

Flexoelectricity induced increase of critical thickness in epitaxial ferroelectric thin films

Hao Zhou, Jiawang Hong, Yihui Zhang, Faxin Li, Yongmao Pei^*, Daining Fang

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

32 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Flexoelectricity describes the coupling between polarization and strain/stress gradients in insulating crystals. In this paper, using the Landau-Ginsburg-Devonshire phenomenological approach, we found that flexoelectricity could increase the theoretical critical thickness in epitaxial BaTiO ₃ thin films, below which the switchable spontaneous polarization vanishes. This increase is remarkable in tensile films while trivial in compressive films due to the electrostriction caused decrease of potential barrier, which can be easily destroyed by the flexoelectricity, between the ferroelectric state and the paraelectric state in tensile films. In addition, the films are still in a uni-polar state even below the critical thickness due to the flexoelectric effect.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	3377-3381
Number of pages	5
Journal	Physica B: Condensed Matter
Volume	407
Issue number	17
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physb.2012.04.041
Publication status	Published - 1 Sept 2012
Externally published	Yes

Keywords

Critical thickness
Ferroelectric thin films
Flexoelectricity
Misfit strain
Phenomenology

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10.1016/j.physb.2012.04.041

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title = "Flexoelectricity induced increase of critical thickness in epitaxial ferroelectric thin films",

abstract = "Flexoelectricity describes the coupling between polarization and strain/stress gradients in insulating crystals. In this paper, using the Landau-Ginsburg-Devonshire phenomenological approach, we found that flexoelectricity could increase the theoretical critical thickness in epitaxial BaTiO 3 thin films, below which the switchable spontaneous polarization vanishes. This increase is remarkable in tensile films while trivial in compressive films due to the electrostriction caused decrease of potential barrier, which can be easily destroyed by the flexoelectricity, between the ferroelectric state and the paraelectric state in tensile films. In addition, the films are still in a uni-polar state even below the critical thickness due to the flexoelectric effect.",

keywords = "Critical thickness, Ferroelectric thin films, Flexoelectricity, Misfit strain, Phenomenology",

author = "Hao Zhou and Jiawang Hong and Yihui Zhang and Faxin Li and Yongmao Pei and Daining Fang",

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AU - Zhou, Hao

AU - Hong, Jiawang

AU - Zhang, Yihui

AU - Li, Faxin

AU - Pei, Yongmao

AU - Fang, Daining

PY - 2012/9/1

Y1 - 2012/9/1

N2 - Flexoelectricity describes the coupling between polarization and strain/stress gradients in insulating crystals. In this paper, using the Landau-Ginsburg-Devonshire phenomenological approach, we found that flexoelectricity could increase the theoretical critical thickness in epitaxial BaTiO 3 thin films, below which the switchable spontaneous polarization vanishes. This increase is remarkable in tensile films while trivial in compressive films due to the electrostriction caused decrease of potential barrier, which can be easily destroyed by the flexoelectricity, between the ferroelectric state and the paraelectric state in tensile films. In addition, the films are still in a uni-polar state even below the critical thickness due to the flexoelectric effect.

AB - Flexoelectricity describes the coupling between polarization and strain/stress gradients in insulating crystals. In this paper, using the Landau-Ginsburg-Devonshire phenomenological approach, we found that flexoelectricity could increase the theoretical critical thickness in epitaxial BaTiO 3 thin films, below which the switchable spontaneous polarization vanishes. This increase is remarkable in tensile films while trivial in compressive films due to the electrostriction caused decrease of potential barrier, which can be easily destroyed by the flexoelectricity, between the ferroelectric state and the paraelectric state in tensile films. In addition, the films are still in a uni-polar state even below the critical thickness due to the flexoelectric effect.

KW - Critical thickness

KW - Ferroelectric thin films

KW - Flexoelectricity

KW - Misfit strain

KW - Phenomenology

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Flexoelectricity induced increase of critical thickness in epitaxial ferroelectric thin films

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Keywords

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