Singe ferroelectric and chiral magnetic domain of single-crystalline BiFeO${}_3$ in an electric field

Abstract

We report polarized neutron scattering and piezoresponse force microscopy studies of millimeter-sized single crystals of multiferroic BiFeO${}_3$. The crystals, grown below the Curie temperature, consist of a single ferroelectric domain. Two unique electric polarization directions, as well as the populations of equivalent spiral magnetic domains, can be switched reversibly by an electric field. A ferroelectric monodomain with a single-$q$ single-helicity spin spiral can be obtained. This level of control, so far unachievable in thin films, makes single-crystal BiFeO${}_3$ a promising object for multiferroics research.

4 figures in separate jpg files

References in corpus (1)

• Electric-field-induced spin-flop in BiFeO3 single crystals at room-temperature

Cited by in corpus (1)

• Terahertz wave generation via optical rectification from multiferroic BiFeO3