Large scale arrays of four-state vortex domains in BiFeO3 thin film

作者：Weiyang Wang, Yin‐Lian Zhu, Y. L. Tang, Yaobin Xu, Ying Liu, Shuaihui Li, S. R. Zhang, Yujia Wang, Xiuliang Ma · 发表于：Applied Physics Letters · 年份：2016 · DOI：10.1063/1.4967878 · 被引用次数：29 · 研究领域：Multiferroics and related materials、Ferroelectric and Piezoelectric Materials、Ferroelectric and Negative Capacitance Devices

Exotic domain states, like vortex, offer the promise of superior properties and the potential disclination strain is a key factor for their formation in ferroelectrics. Here we show that large scale arrays of four-state vortex domains can be obtained in rhombohedral BiFeO3 thin films grown on PrScO3 substrates by pulsed laser deposition. Cs-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy demonstrates that each vortex domain is comprised of four ferroelectric variants with two 180° domain walls and two 109° domain walls. Atomic mappings of the lattice distortions unit cell by unit cell reveal that the cores of the vortex might be charged. The strains are mainly concentrated on domain walls. The formation mechanism of such large scale vortex-like states was discussed.