Ferroelectrics results from the displacement of ions that leads to spontaneous polarization with the internal electric field pointing towards a specific direction in materials. A region with the same polarization direction is called a ferroelectric domain. Understanding ferroelectric domain switching behaviour under external stimuli is extremely important for the applications of ferroelectrics in memories, actuators and nanoelectronic devices. In this presentation, I will present our recent in-situ transmission electron microscopy investigation results on how separate and combined mechanical and electrical loadings affect ferroelectric domain structures [1] and how a high-energy electron beam can lead to local accumulation of trapped charges that determine local domain configurations [2]. Our results show that mechanical confinement during electrical loading adds one more degree of freedom for domain manipulation, which would provide an appealing possibility for significantly improving ferroelectric device performance, and that a high-energy electron beam can be used to precisely and reversibly control ferroelectric nano-domain morphology for memory storage devices.
References
[1] Z.B. Chen, L. Hong, F.F. Wang, S.P. Ringer, L.Q. Chen, H.S. Luo, X.Z. Liao, Phys. Rev. Lett. 118, 017601 (2017).
[2] Z.B. Chen, X.L. Wang, S.P. Ringer, X.Z. Liao, Phys. Rev. Lett. 117, 027601 (2016).