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Title: Giant Ferroelectric Polarization in Ultrathin Ferroelectrics via Boundary-Condition Engineering

Journal Article · · Advanced Materials
 [1];  [2];  [3];  [2];  [4];  [5];  [5];  [4];  [5];  [4];  [3];  [6];  [1]
  1. Univ. of California, Irvine, CA (United States). Dept. of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science; Nanjing Univ. (China). National Lab. of Solid State Microstructures. College of Engineering and Applied Sciences
  2. Univ. of California, Irvine, CA (United States). Dept. of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science
  3. Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY (United States). Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering
  4. Pennsylvania State Univ., University Park, PA (United States). Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering
  5. Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States). Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering
  6. Nanjing Univ. (China). National Lab. of Solid State Microstructures. College of Engineering and Applied Sciences
+ Show Author Affiliations

Tailoring and enhancing the functional properties of materials at reduced dimension is critical for continuous advancement of modern electronic devices. Here, the discovery of local surface induced giant spontaneous polarization in ultrathin BiFeO 3 ferroelectric films is reported. Using aberration‐corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy, it is found that the spontaneous polarization in a 2 nm‐thick ultrathin BiFeO 3 film is abnormally increased up to ≈90–100 µC cm −2 in the out‐of‐plane direction and a peculiar rumpled nanodomain structure with very large variation in c / a ratios, which is analogous to morphotropic phase boundaries (MPBs), is formed. By a combination of density functional theory and phase‐field calculations, it is shown that it is the unique single atomic Bi 2 O 3 − x layer at the surface that leads to the enhanced polarization and appearance of the MPB‐like nanodomain structure. This finding clearly demonstrates a novel route to the enhanced functional properties in the material system with reduced dimension via engineering the surface boundary conditions.

Research Organization:
Pennsylvania State Univ., University Park, PA (United States); Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY (United States); Univ. of California, Irvine, CA (United States); Nanjing Univ. (China)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES); National Science Foundation (NSF); National Basic Research Program of China; National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC)
Grant/Contract Number:
FG02-07ER46417; SC0002334; SC0014430; AC02-05CH11231; DMR-1210588; DMR-1420620; ECCS-0335765; 2015CB654901; 51302132; 11474147
OSTI ID:
1533044
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1374090
Journal Information:
Advanced Materials, Vol. 29, Issue 30; ISSN 0935-9648
Publisher:
WileyCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 40 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (9)

Superior polarization retention through engineered domain wall pinning journal January 2020
Modulation of charged a 1 /a 2 domains and piezoresponses of tensile strained PbTiO 3 films by the cooling rate journal January 2019
Structural, magnetic, and ferroelectric properties of T-like cobalt-doped BiFeO 3 thin films journal February 2018
Control of Domain Structures in Multiferroic Thin Films through Defect Engineering journal August 2018
Surface-screening mechanisms in ferroelectric thin films and their effect on polarization dynamics and domain structures journal January 2018
Ferroelectric Tunnel Junctions: Modulations on the Potential Barrier journal October 2019
Real-time studies of ferroelectric domain switching: a review journal November 2019
Direct observation of room-temperature out-of-plane ferroelectricity and tunneling electroresistance at the two-dimensional limit journal August 2018
Controllable defect driven symmetry change and domain structure evolution in BiFeO 3 with enhanced tetragonality journal January 2019

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36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
polarization
scanning transmission electron microscopy
surface effect
ultrathin ferroelectric films