Nanoscale switching characteristics of nearly tetragonal BiFeO3 thin films

Abstract

We have investigated the nanoscale switching properties of strain-engineered BiFeO3 thin films deposited on LaAlO3 substrates using a combination of scanning probe techniques. Polarized Raman spectral analysis indicate that the nearly-tetragonal films have monoclinic (Cc) rather than P4mm tetragonal symmetry. Through local switching-spectroscopy measurements and piezoresponse force microscopy we provide clear evidence of ferroelectric switching of the tetragonal phase but the polarization direction, and therefore its switching, deviates strongly from the expected (001) tetragonal axis. We also demonstrate a large and reversible, electrically-driven structural phase transition from the tetragonal to the rhombohedral polymorph in this material which is promising for a plethora of applications.

10 pages, 6 figures

References in corpus (7)

• Origin of magnetoelectric behavior in BiFeO${}_3$
• Effect of epitaxial strain on the spontaneous polarization of thin film ferroelectrics
• Tunneling electroresistance effect in ferroelectric tunnel junctions at the nanoscale
• Fractal dimension and size scaling of domains in thin films of multiferroic BiFeO3
• Strain-induced isosymmetric phase transition in BiFeO3
• Tunneling Electroresistance in Ferroelectric Tunnel Junctions with a Composite Barrier
• Electric field effect on BiFeO${}_3$ single crystal investigated by Raman spectroscopy

Cited by in corpus (12)

• Stress-induced R-MA-MC-T symmetry changes in BiFeO3 films
• Low-Symmetry Monoclinic Phases and Polarization Rotation Path Mediated By Epitaxial Strain in Multiferroic BiFeO3 Thin Films
• A multiferroic on the brink: uncovering the nuances of strain-induced transitions in BiFeO${}_3$
• Large electric-field induced strain in BiFeO3 ceramics
• Temperature and thickness evolution and epitaxial breakdown in highly-strained BiFeO3 thin films
• Antiferromagnetic transitions in `T-like' BiFeO3
• Phase transition close to room temperature in BiFeO3 thin films
• Mechanical Switching of Nanoscale Multiferroic Phase Boundaries
• Controllable Defect Driven Symmetry Change and Domain Structure Evolution in BiFeO3 with Enhanced Tetragonality
• Anomalous low-energy phonons in nearly tetragonal BiFeO3 thin films
• Unit cell orientation of tetragonal-like BiFeO${}_3$ thin films grown on highly miscut LaAlO${}_3$ substrates
• An empirical approach to measuring interface energies in mixed-phase bismuth ferrite