Zig-zag charged domain walls in ferroelectric PbTiO$_3$

Abstract

We report a theoretical investigation of a charged 180 • domain wall in ferroelectric PbTiO3, compensated by randomly distributed immobile charge defects. For this we utilize atomistic shellmodel simulations and continuous phase-field simulations in the framework of the Ginzburg-Landau-Devonshire model. We predict that domain walls form a zig-zag pattern and we discuss its properties in a broad interval of compensation-region widths, ranging from a couple to over a hundred nanometers.