8 research outputs found
Spontaneous Polarization in an Ultrathin Improper-Ferroelectric/Dielectric Bilayer in a Capacitor Structure at Cryogenic Temperatures
To determine the effect of depolarization and the critical thickness in improper-ferroelectric hexagonal-ferrite thin films, we investigate the polarization switching of a ferroelectric/dielectric bilayer in capacitor structures at 20 K. Experimentally, we show that the spontaneous polarization persists throughout the studied thickness range (3 to 80 unit cell), even with a thick (10-nm) dielectric layer, suggesting no practical thickness limit for applications. By fitting the effect of depolarization using the phenomenological theory, we show that the spontaneous polarization remains finite when the thickness of the ferroelectric layer approaches zero, providing a hint for the absence of critical thickness. We also find that the interfacial effects limit the multidomain formation and govern the polarization switching mechanisms
Domainâwall magnetoelectric coupling in multiferroic hexagonal YbFeO\u3csub\u3e3\u3c/sub\u3e films
Electrical modulation of magnetic states in single-phase multiferroic materials, using domain-wall magnetoelectric (ME) coupling, can be enhanced substantially by controlling the population density of the ferroelectric (FE) domain walls during polarization switching. In this work, we investigate the domain-wall ME coupling in multiferroic h-YbFeO3 thin films, in which the FE domain walls induce clamped antiferromagnetic (AFM) domain walls with reduced magnetization magnitude. Simulation according to the phenomenological theory indicates that the domain-wall ME effect is dramatically enhanced when the separation between the FE domain walls shrinks below the characteristic width of the clamped AFM domain walls during the ferroelectric switching. Experimentally, we show that while the magnetization magnitude remains same for both the positive and the negative saturation polarization states, there is evidence of magnetization reduction at the coercive voltages. These results suggest that the domain-wall ME effect is viable for electrical control of magnetization
Colossal optical anisotropy from atomic-scale modulations
In modern optics, materials with large birefringence ({\Delta}n, where n is
the refractive index) are sought after for polarization control (e.g. in wave
plates, polarizing beam splitters, etc.), nonlinear optics and quantum optics
(e.g. for phase matching and production of entangled photons),
micromanipulation, and as a platform for unconventional light-matter coupling,
such as Dyakonov-like surface polaritons and hyperbolic phonon polaritons.
Layered "van der Waals" materials, with strong intra-layer bonding and weak
inter-layer bonding, can feature some of the largest optical anisotropy;
however, their use in most optical systems is limited because their optic axis
is out of the plane of the layers and the layers are weakly attached, making
the anisotropy hard to access. Here, we demonstrate that a bulk crystal with
subtle periodic modulations in its structure -- Sr9/8TiS3 -- is transparent and
positive-uniaxial, with extraordinary index n_e = 4.5 and ordinary index n_o =
2.4 in the mid- to far-infrared. The excess Sr, compared to stoichiometric
SrTiS3, results in the formation of TiS6 trigonal-prismatic units that break
the infinite chains of face-shared TiS6 octahedra in SrTiS3 into periodic
blocks of five TiS6 octahedral units. The additional electrons introduced by
the excess Sr subsequently occupy the TiS6 octahedral blocks to form highly
oriented and polarizable electron clouds, which selectively boost the
extraordinary index n_e and result in record birefringence ({\Delta}n > 2.1
with low loss). The connection between subtle structural modulations and large
changes in refractive index suggests new categories of anisotropic materials
and also tunable optical materials with large refractive-index modulation and
low optical losses.Comment: Main text + supplementar
High frequency atomic tunneling yields ultralow and glass-like thermal conductivity in chalcogenide single crystals
Crystalline solids exhibiting glass-like thermal conductivity have attracted substantial attention both for fundamental interest and applications such as thermoelectrics. In most crystals, the competition of phonon scattering by anharmonic interactions and crystalline imperfections leads to a non-monotonic trend of thermal conductivity with temperature. Defect-free crystals that exhibit the glassy trend of low thermal conductivity with a monotonic increase with temperature are desirable because they are intrinsically thermally insulating while retaining useful properties of perfect crystals. However, this behavior is rare, and its microscopic origin remains unclear. Here, we report the observation of ultralow and glass-like thermal conductivity in a hexagonal perovskite chalcogenide single crystal, BaTiSâ, despite its highly symmetric and simple primitive cell. Elastic and inelastic scattering measurements reveal the quantum mechanical origin of this unusual trend. A two-level atomic tunneling system exists in a shallow double-well potential of the Ti atom and is of sufficiently high frequency to scatter heat-carrying phonons up to room temperature. While atomic tunneling has been invoked to explain the low-temperature thermal conductivity of solids for decades, our study establishes the presence of sub-THz frequency tunneling systems even in high-quality, electrically insulating single crystals, leading to anomalous transport properties well above cryogenic temperatures
Giant Modulation of Refractive Index from Correlated Disorder
Correlated disorder has been shown to enhance and modulate magnetic,
electrical, dipolar, electrochemical and mechanical properties of materials.
However, the possibility of obtaining novel optical and opto-electronic
properties from such correlated disorder remains an open question. Here, we
show unambiguous evidence of correlated disorder in the form of anisotropic,
sub-angstrom-scale atomic displacements modulating the refractive index tensor
and resulting in the giant optical anisotropy observed in BaTiS3, a
quasi-one-dimensional hexagonal chalcogenide. Single crystal X-ray diffraction
studies reveal the presence of antipolar displacements of Ti atoms within
adjacent TiS6 chains along the c-axis, and three-fold degenerate Ti
displacements in the a-b plane. 47/49Ti solid-state NMR provides additional
evidence for those Ti displacements in the form of a three-horned NMR lineshape
resulting from low symmetry local environment around Ti atoms. We used scanning
transmission electron microscopy to directly observe the globally disordered Ti
a-b plane displacements and find them to be ordered locally over a few unit
cells. First-principles calculations show that the Ti a-b plane displacements
selectively reduce the refractive index along the ab-plane, while having
minimal impact on the refractive index along the chain direction, thus
resulting in a giant enhancement in the optical anisotropy. By showing a strong
connection between correlated disorder and the optical response in BaTiS3, this
study opens a pathway for designing optical materials with high refractive
index and functionalities such as a large optical anisotropy and nonlinearity.Comment: 24 pages, 3 figure
Amorphization and plasticity of olivine during low temperature micropillar deformation experiments
The data are the mechanical data on the deformation of olivine micropillars that analyzed in the manuscript with title above
Giant Modulation of Refractive Index from Picoscale Atomic Displacements
It is shown that structural disorderâin the form of anisotropic, picoscale atomic displacementsâmodulates the refractive index tensor and results in the giant optical anisotropy observed in BaTiSâ, a quasi-1D hexagonal chalcogenide. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies reveal the presence of antipolar displacements of Ti atoms within adjacent TiSâ chains along the c-axis, and threefold degenerate Ti displacements in the aâb plane. âŽâ·/âŽâčTi solid-state NMR provides additional evidence for those Ti displacements in the form of a three-horned NMR lineshape resulting from a low symmetry local environment around Ti atoms. Scanning transmission electron microscopy is used to directly observe the globally disordered Ti aâb plane displacements and find them to be ordered locally over a few unit cells. First-principles calculations show that the Ti aâb plane displacements selectively reduce the refractive index along the ab-plane, while having minimal impact on the refractive index along the chain direction, thus resulting in a giant enhancement in the optical anisotropy. By showing a strong connection between structural disorder with picoscale displacements and the optical response in BaTiSâ, this study opens a pathway for designing optical materials with high refractive index and functionalities such as large optical anisotropy and nonlinearity.ISSN:0935-9648ISSN:1521-409