Ferroelectric (FE) and antiferroelectric (AFE) materials are used for several memory-related and energy-related applications. Perovskite materials (e.g., bulk ceramics) remain the most common materials for many applications. However, due to large deposition thickness, these materials are not appropriate for future miniaturized devices. In 2011, FE and AFE properties were reported in Si-doped HfO 2 thin films. HfO 2 -based FE and AFE materials have several advantages over conventional materials, such as ultrathin deposition thickness (in range of nanometers), compatibility with existing Si semiconductor technology, and suitability for the integration within 3-D nanostructures. Therefore, fluorite-structured materials can be appropriate for miniaturized devices. These fluorite-structured materials are extensively studied for memory and energy-related applications. The first review on this topic was published after four years of discovering the FE and AFE properties in these materials. From the past decade, a lot of research has been reported about the detailed mechanism and application of these materials. This review insightfully discusses the progress in the research of fluorite-structured materials and critically discusses some potential applications. Here some challenges are also discussed, new knowledge is extracted, and promising future research directions of these materials are suggested.

The present work investigates the superior ability of LaFeO3 (LaFeO) and La0.8Ca0.2FeO2.95 (LaCaFeO) nanoparticles to detect 3 ppm SO2 gas. The influence of calcium substitution on the sensing behaviour of LaFeO has been studied. High resolution TEM images show that the particle sizes of LaFeO and LaCaFeO are less than 100 nm and SEM images show the agglomeration of interconnected nanoparticles. Both LaFeO and LaCaFeO crystallize in the orthorhombic crystal system with the space group Pbnm. Rietveld analysis of neutron diffraction data showed that LaCaFeO has lattice oxygen vacancies. In addition, magnetic refinements on both the samples have been carried out. The presence of lattice oxygen vacancies in LaCaFeO is qualitatively supported by Raman and XPS measurements. Electrical characterization showed increased conductivity for the LaCaFeO sample, influencing their sensing performance significantly. The LaCaFeO nanoparticles exhibit higher sensitivity, faster response time, rapid recovery time and good recyclability for sensing 3 ppm SO2 gas. This enhanced sensing behaviour is attributed to the increased oxygen vacancies in the lattice as well as the surface. As a consequence, increased active sites are created in LaCaFeO, promoting redox reaction between the analyte and the sensing material. The results demonstrated that while LaFeO is a good gas sensor, p-type substitution by Ca(2+) renders this material an improved resistivity based gas sensor to detect low concentration SO2.

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