Formation of self-assembled nanodomain structures in single crystals of uniaxial ferroelectrics lithium niobate, lithium tantalate and strontium–barium niobate

Abstract

The formation and evolution of the self-assembled nanodomain structures during polarization reversal have been comparatively analyzed in single crystals of various uniaxial ferroelectrics: LiNbO 3 (LN), LiTaO 3 (LT) and Sr x Ba 1Àx Nb 2 O 6 (SBN). Several experimental methods have been used for visualization of the micro-and nanodomain patterns. The static domain images have been obtained by optical microscopy and piezoresponse force microscopy. The Raman confocal microscopy allowed us to obtain the domain images in the bulk. The equilibrium slow switching with effective screening resulted in growth of polygon-shaped microdomains: hexagons in LN, triangles in LT and squares in SBN, which corresponds to crystal symmetry. Switching in nonequilibrium conditions (noneffective screening of depolarization field) brings to appearance of similar nanodomain structures in all studied crystals as a result of different processes: (1) formation of nanodomain ensembles, (2) discrete switching, (3) incomplete merging and (4) spontaneous backswitching.

Time-Resolved X-Ray Diffraction Reveals the Hidden Mechanism of High Piezoelectric Activity in a Uniaxial Ferroelectric

“…These conditions must be further investigated by e.g. in-situ real space domain mapping [9], [23], [57]. Thus, our results extend the list of possible connections between ferroic order and functional properties of materials.…”

Ferroelectric domain wall dynamics characterized with X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy

“…While the static morphology (structure) of domains on different (down to atomic) length scales has been studied extensively and fruitfully using, for example, polarized light (9), electron (10,11), confocal Raman (12), or piezoresponse force (13) microscopy, the experimental characterization of domain wall dynamics has not been so successful. Ferroelectric and ferroelastic domain wall displacements can be commonly modeled by a series of stop-and-go motions (jerks) between the wells of a multiwell energy landscape.…”