title: The origin of ultrahigh piezoelectricity in relaxor-ferroelectric solid solution crystals.
abstract: The discovery of ultrahigh piezoelectricity in relaxor-ferroelectric solid solution single crystals is a breakthrough in ferroelectric materials. A key signature of relaxor-ferroelectric solid solutions is the existence of polar nanoregions, a nanoscale inhomogeneity, that coexist with normal ferroelectric domains. Despite two decades of extensive studies, the contribution of polar nanoregions to the underlying piezoelectric properties of relaxor ferroelectrics has yet to be established. Here we quantitatively characterize the contribution of polar nanoregions to the dielectric/piezoelectric responses of relaxor-ferroelectric crystals using a combination of cryogenic experiments and phase-field simulations. The contribution of polar nanoregions to the room-temperature dielectric and piezoelectric properties is in the range of 50-80%. A mesoscale mechanism is proposed to reveal the origin of the high piezoelectricity in relaxor ferroelectrics, where the polar nanoregions aligned in a ferroelectric matrix can facilitate polarization rotation. This mechanism emphasizes the critical role of local structure on the macroscopic properties of ferroelectric materials.
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Materials Research Institute, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USA.|Electronic Materials Research Laboratory, Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education and International Center for Dielectric Research, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710049, China.
authors.forename: Fei
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4572-0322
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Materials Research Institute, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USA.|Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, Australian Institute of Innovative Materials, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales 2500, Australia.
authors.forename: Shujun
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Materials Research Institute, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USA.
authors.forename: Tiannan
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Electronic Materials Research Laboratory, Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education and International Center for Dielectric Research, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710049, China.
authors.forename: Zhuo
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Electronic Materials Research Laboratory, Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education and International Center for Dielectric Research, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710049, China.
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: High Pressure Synergetic Consortium, Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Institute of Washington, Argonne, Illinois 60439, USA.|Center for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research, Shanghai 201203, China.
authors.forename: Gang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Materials Research Institute, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USA.
authors.forename: Jianjun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, Australian Institute of Innovative Materials, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales 2500, Australia.
authors.forename: Jianli
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, Australian Institute of Innovative Materials, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales 2500, Australia.
authors.forename: Zhenxiang
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and 4D LABS, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada V5A 1S6.|Electronic Materials Research Laboratory, Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education and International Center for Dielectric Research, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710049, China.
authors.forename: Zuo-Guang
authors.initials: ZG
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.affiliation: TRS Technologies Inc., 2820 E. College Avenue, State College, Pennsylvania 16801, USA.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Materials Research Institute, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USA.
authors.forename: Thomas R
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Shrout
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Materials Research Institute, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USA.
authors.forename: Long-Qing
authors.initials: LQ
authors.lastname: Chen