Translational Boundaries as Incipient Ferrielectric Domains in Antiferroelectric PbZrO3
Liu, Ying (Institut Català de Nanociència i Nanotecnologia)
Niu, Ranming (University of Sydney)
Majchrowski, Andrzej (Military University of Technology)
Roleder, Krystian (University of Silesia)
Cordero-Edwards, Kumara (Institut Català de Nanociència i Nanotecnologia)
Cairney, Julie M. (University of Sydney)
Arbiol i Cobos, Jordi (Institut Català de Nanociència i Nanotecnologia)
Catalan, Gustau (Institut Català de Nanociència i Nanotecnologia)

Date:	2023
Abstract:	In the archetypal antiferroelectric PbZrO3, antiparallel electric dipoles cancel each other, resulting in zero spontaneous polarization at the macroscopic level. Yet in actual hysteresis loops, the cancellation is rarely perfect and some remnant polarization is often observed, suggesting the metastability of polar phases in this material. In this work, using aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy methods on a PbZrO3 single crystal, we uncover the coexistence of the common antiferroelectric phase and a ferrielectric phase featuring an electric dipole pattern of ↓↑↓. This dipole arrangement, predicted by Aramberri et al. to be the ground state of PbZrO3 at 0 K, appears at room temperature in the form of translational boundaries. The dual nature of the ferrielectric phase, both a distinct phase and a translational boundary structure, places important symmetry constraints on its growth. These are overcome by sideways motion of the boundaries, which aggregate to form arbitrarily wide stripe domains of the polar phase embedded within the antiferroelectric matrix.
Grants:	European Commission 766726 Agencia Estatal de Investigación PID2019-108573GB-C21 Agència de Gestió d'Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca 2017/SGR-327 Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad SEV-2017-0706 European Commission 754510
Note:	Altres ajuts: CERCA Programme/Generalitat de Catalunya
Rights:	Aquest material està protegit per drets d'autor i/o drets afins. Podeu utilitzar aquest material en funció del que permet la legislació de drets d'autor i drets afins d'aplicació al vostre cas. Per a d'altres usos heu d'obtenir permís del(s) titular(s) de drets.
Language:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió acceptada per publicar
Subject:	Aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopies ; Anti ferroelectrics ; Antiferroelectric phasis ; Electric dipole ; Macroscopic levels ; Metastabilities ; Polar phasis ; Remnant polarizations ; Spontaneous polarizations ; Translational boundaries ; Electricity ; Motion
Published in:	Physical review letters, Vol. 130, Issue 21 (May 2023) , art. 216801, ISSN 1079-7114

DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.130.216801

Postprint 16 p, 1.4 MB

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Research literature > UAB research groups literature > Research Centres and Groups (research output) > Experimental sciences > Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2)
Articles > Research articles
Articles > Published articles