Polar domains in lead titanate films under tensile strain.
Thin films of PbTiO3, a classical ferroelectric, have been grown under tensile strain on single-crystal substrates of DyScO3. The films, of only 5 nm thickness, grow fully coherent with the substrate, as evidenced by synchrotron x-ray diffraction. A mapping of the reciprocal space reveals intensity modulations (satellites) due to regularly spaced polar domains in which the polarization appears rotated away from the substrate normal, characterizing a low-symmetry phase not observed in the bulk material. This could have important practical implications since these phases are known to be responsible for ultrahigh piezoelectric responses in complex systems.
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Materials Science Centre, University of Groningen, Groningen 9747AG, The Netherlands. gcat05@esc.cam.ac.uk
Janssens
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Csiszar
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Seeck
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Noheda
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