Photovoltaic property of BiFeO3 thin films with 109° domains

Abstract
We report the photovoltaic effect of multiferroic BiFeO3 thin films with 109° domains under white light illumination. BiFeO3 thin films that contain well-aligned 109° domains with mainly two polarization variants were prepared by using miscut DyScO3 substrates. We have conduced piezoelectric force microscopy study using a planar device. A direct correlation between the 109° domains switching and the photovoltaic response of the films was established. The polarity of the photovoltage is switchable upon polarization reversal.