Observation of Uncompensated Bound Charges at Improper Ferroelectric Domain Walls
- 12 February 2019
- journal article
- research article
- Published by American Chemical Society (ACS) in Nano Letters
- Vol. 19 (3), 1659-1664
- https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.nanolett.8b04608
Abstract
Low-temperature electrostatic force microscopy (EFM) is used to probe unconventional domain walls in the improper ferroelectric semiconductor Er$_{0.99}$Ca$_{0.01}$MnO$_3$ down to cryogenic temperatures. The low-temperature EFM maps reveal pronounced electric far fields generated by partially uncompensated domain-wall bound charges. Positively and negatively charged walls display qualitatively different fields as a function of temperature, which we explain based on different screening mechanisms and the corresponding relaxation time of the mobile carriers. Our results demonstrate domain walls in improper ferroelectrics as a unique example of natural interfaces that are stable against the emergence of electrically uncompensated bound charges. The outstanding robustness of improper ferroelectric domain walls in conjunction with their electronic versatility brings us an important step closer to the development of durable and ultra-small electronic components for next-generation nanotechnology.Funding Information
- Baden-Württemberg Stiftung
- Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung
- Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
- Basic Energy Sciences (DE-AC02-05-CH11231)
- Norges Teknisk-Naturvitenskapelige Universitet
- H2020 European Research Council (724529)
- Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung (200021 149192)
- Université de Bordeaux
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