We present an experimental approach to study the ultrafast polarization switching dynamics in thin-film ferroelectrics. A semiconductor photoconductive switch with femtosecond laser illumination is used as a ''pulse generator'' to produce jitter-free, sub-100 ps rise time step-function-like electrical pulses. Quantitative measurements yield a polarization switching time, t s , of ϳ220 ps when measured with a 5 V, 68 ps rise time input electrical pulse. Modeling of the switching transients using the Merz-Ishibashi model and Merz-Shur model of switching kinetics yields a quantitative estimate of the characteristic switching time constant, t 0 , of ϳ70-90 ps.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.