Observation of Atomic-Scale Polar Vortex-Antivortex Pairs in Antiferroelectric PbZrO3 Thin Films

Xian Kui Wei*, Ke Xu, Kaushik Vaideeswaran, Joachim Mayer, Houbing Huang*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Topological polar structures, in analogy to spin vortices and skyrmions, have received tremendous attention for their fascinating prospects in future device applications. However, in the widely studied ferroelectric-based superlattices, the epitaxial heterointerfaces, yielding desired strain, depolarization, and gradient energies, greatly confine the mobility of the topological solitons. Here, we report observation of polar vortex-antivortex pairs near junctions of antiphase boundaries in antiferroelectric PbZrO3 thin films by using atomic-resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy. Our temporal-resolved lattice analysis reveals that the local strain gradient caused by an incommensurate modulation constructs the smallest topological units reported to date. Our phase-field simulations unveil that the Pb-O vacancy-induced random electric fields account for their three-dimensional formation, and the stimulus of electron-beam irradiation can drive their dynamic migration. The findings offer a new approach to comprehend fundamental physics about antiferroelectricity and the design of functional devices based on topological structures in antiferroelectric thin films.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)8655-8662
Number of pages8
JournalNano Letters
Volume25
Issue number21
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 28 May 2025

Keywords

  • Antiferroelectric perovskite
  • dynamic migration
  • incommensurate modulation
  • polar vortex−antivortex pairs
  • scanning transmission electron microscopy

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