Inverse transition of labyrinthine domain patterns in ferroelectric thin films

Nahas, Yousra; Prokhorenko, Sergei; Fischer, Johanna; Xu, Bin; Carrétéro, C.; Prosandeev, Sergey; Bibès, Manuel; Fusil, S.; Dkhil, Brahim; Garcia, Vincent; Bellaïche, L.

doi:10.1038/s41586-019-1845-4

Cited by 89 publications

(67 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…[ 58 ] Direct evidence for the formation of rotating polarization at atomic scale was made in 2011 when experimentalists were able to directly observe continuous polarization rotation near the interfaces of ferroelectric thin films using aberration‐corrected (scanning) transmission electron microscopy (TEM). [ 59,60 ] Since then, several exotic polar topologies such as flux‐closure domains, [ 61–65 ] vortices, [ 66–71 ] non‐Ising‐like domain walls, [ 72–74 ] center‐type domains, [ 68,70,75,76 ] labyrinthine domains, [ 77 ] bubbles, [ 78 ] incommensurate curl domains, [ 79 ] spiral states, [ 80 ] hedgehog states, [ 81 ] and polar skyrmions, [ 82,83 ] have been revealed in various ferroelectric materials. Which kind of polar topology develops would depend on the relative magnitudes of various energies, such as elastic (i.e., strain), electrostatic (i.e., depolarization), polarization/chemical gradient, and interfacial coupling energies.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recent Progress on Topological Structures in Ferroic Thin Films and Heterostructures

et al. 2020

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Topological spin/polarization structures in ferroic materials continue to draw great attention as a result of their fascinating physical behaviors and promising applications in the field of high‐density nonvolatile memories as well as future energy‐efficient nanoelectronic and spintronic devices. Such developments have been made, in part, based on recent advances in theoretical calculations, the synthesis of high‐quality thin films, and the characterization of their emergent phenomena and exotic phases. Herein, progress over the last decade in the study of topological structures in ferroic thin films and heterostructures is explored, including the observation of topological structures and control of their structures and emergent physical phenomena through epitaxial strain, layer thickness, electric, magnetic fields, etc. First, the evolution of topological spin structures (e.g., magnetic skyrmions) and associated functionalities (e.g., topological Hall effect) in magnetic thin films and heterostructures is discussed. Then, the exotic polar topologies (e.g., domain walls, closure domains, polar vortices, bubble domains, and polar skyrmions) and their emergent physical properties in ferroelectric oxide films and heterostructures are explored. Finally, a brief overview and prospectus of how the field may evolve in the coming years is provided.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recent Progress on Topological Structures in Ferroic Thin Films and Heterostructures

et al. 2020

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“…Understanding the intricate formation processes at play in the formation of modulated phases is thus pivotal for the development of future technologies, e.g., domain wall nanoelectronics [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]21,22 , a field of research that has recently seen fiery surge of interest. So far, modulated phases of ferroelectric domains such as the dipolar maze or labyrinthine phase 23 , and the nano-bubble or skyrmionic phase 21,22,24 have been somewhat regarded as conceptually disparate [24][25][26][27][28][29][30] . We here numerically predict and experimentally evidence that, depending on the magnitude of the external field, temperature and the kinetics of the phase separation, topologically non-trivial phases emerge upon sub-critically quenching tetragonal Pb(Zr x Ti 1 − x )O 3 through either spinodal decomposition or nucleation processes.…”

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confidence: 99%

Topology and control of self-assembled domain patterns in low-dimensional ferroelectrics

et al. 2020

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Whilst often discussed as non-trivial phases of low-dimensional ferroelectrics, modulated polar phases such as the dipolar maze and the nano-bubble state have been appraised as essentially distinct. Here we emphasize their topological nature and show that these self-patterned polar states, but also additional mesophases such as the disconnected labyrinthine phase and the mixed bimeron-skyrmion phase, can be fathomed in their plurality through the unifying canvas of phase separation kinetics. Under compressive strain, varying the control parameter, i.e., the external electric field, conditions the nonequilibrium self-assembly of domains, and bridges nucleation and spinodal decomposition via the sequential onset of topological transitions. The evolutive topology of these polar textures is driven by the (re)combination of the elementary topological defects, merons and antimerons, into a plethora of composite topological defects such as the fourfold junctions, the bimeron and the target skyrmion. Moreover, we demonstrate that these manipulable defects are stable at room temperature and feature enhanced functionalities, appealing for devising future topological-based nanoelectronics.

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“…We were motivated to explore this by a recent work from Nahas et al in which a labyrinthine mosaic domain pattern (disordered stripe domains with topological defects) of ferroelectric domains in BFO films could be converted to a perfectly ordered stripe domain pattern with lengths of over several tens of microns. [ 59 ] Such changes were experimentally obtained by an ex situ annealing process whereby the sample was held at 1073 K for 1 h under oxygen flow and cooled down slowly to room temperature (2 K min −1 ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interfacial Strain Gradients Control Nanoscale Domain Morphology in Epitaxial BiFeO₃ Multiferroic Films

Sando

Han

Govinden

et al. 2020

Adv Funct Materials

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Domain switching pathways fundamentally control performance in ferroelectric thin film devices. In epitaxial bismuth ferrite (BiFeO 3 ) films, the domain morphology is known to influence the multiferroic orders. While both striped and mosaic domains have been observed, the origins of the latter have remained unclear. Here, it is shown that domain morphology is defined by the strain profile across the film-substrate interface. In samples with mosaic domains, X-ray diffraction analysis reveals strong strain gradients, while geometric phase analysis using scanning transmission electron microscopy finds that within 5 nm of the film-substrate interface, the out-of-plane strain shows an anomalous dip while the in-plane strain is constant. Conversely, if uniform strain is maintained across the interface with zero strain gradient, striped domains are formed. Critically, an ex situ thermal treatment, which eliminates the interfacial strain gradient, converts the domains from mosaic to striped. The antiferromagnetic state of the BiFeO 3 is also influenced by the domain structure, whereby the mosaic domains disrupt the long-range spin cycloid. This work demonstrates that atomic scale tuning of interfacial strain gradients is a powerful route to manipulate the global multiferroic orders in epitaxial films.

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Inverse transition of labyrinthine domain patterns in ferroelectric thin films

Cited by 89 publications

References 42 publications

Recent Progress on Topological Structures in Ferroic Thin Films and Heterostructures

Recent Progress on Topological Structures in Ferroic Thin Films and Heterostructures

Topology and control of self-assembled domain patterns in low-dimensional ferroelectrics

Interfacial Strain Gradients Control Nanoscale Domain Morphology in Epitaxial BiFeO₃ Multiferroic Films

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Inverse transition of labyrinthine domain patterns in ferroelectric thin films

Cited by 89 publications

References 42 publications

Recent Progress on Topological Structures in Ferroic Thin Films and Heterostructures

Recent Progress on Topological Structures in Ferroic Thin Films and Heterostructures

Topology and control of self-assembled domain patterns in low-dimensional ferroelectrics

Interfacial Strain Gradients Control Nanoscale Domain Morphology in Epitaxial BiFeO3 Multiferroic Films

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Interfacial Strain Gradients Control Nanoscale Domain Morphology in Epitaxial BiFeO₃ Multiferroic Films