Related papers: Towards structural softness and enhanced electrome…
We report the dynamics of soft phonon modes and their role towards the various structural transformations in Aurivillius materials by employing terahertz frequency-domain spectroscopy, atomic pair distribution function analysis, and…
We use first principles density functional theory calculations to investigate the effect of biaxial strain in the low-temperature structural and ferroelectric properties of [111]-oriented SrTiO$_3$. We find that [111] biaxial strain,…
We study ferroelectricity in the classic perovskite ferroelectric PbTiO$_3$ to high pressures with density functional theory (DFT) and experimental diamond-anvil techniques. We use second harmonic generation (SHG) spectroscopy to detect…
A metastable perovskite BiFe0.5Sc0.5O3 synthesized under high-pressure (6 GPa) and high- temperature (1500 K) conditions was obtained in two different polymorphs, antipolar Pnma and polar Ima2, through an irreversible behaviour under a…
We study the antiferrodistortive instability and its interaction with ferroelectricity in cubic perovskite compounds. Our first-principles calculations show that coexistence of both instabilities is very common. We develop a…
Ferroelectric HfO$_2$ has emerged as a highly promising material for high-density nonvolatile memory and nanoscale transistor applications. However, the uncertain origin of polarization in HfO$_2$ limits our ability to fully understand and…
Layers of perovskites, found in 3D materials, 2D heterostructures, and nanotubes, often distort from high symmetry to facilitate dipole polarisation that is exploitable in many applications. Using density-functional theory calculations,…
The ferroelectricity in $\mathrm{HfO}_2$ thin films is widely attributed to the formation of a polar orthorhombic phase named OIII phase. However, the complexity of OIII phase originated from its low symmetry becomes an obstacle for…
We investigate energetically favorable structures of ABO$_2$N oxynitrides as functions of pressure and strain via swarm-intelligence-based structure prediction methods, DFT lattice dynamics and first-principles molecular dynamics. We…
Perovskite oxide ferroelectrics show classical soft mode behaviour typical for the onset of a homogeneous long-range polar state and a displacive phase transition. Besides these long wave length properties, local effects are observed by…
The discovery of ferroelectricity in both pure and doped HfO$_2$-based thin films have revitalized the interest in using ferroelectrics for nanoscale device applications. To take advantage of this silicon-compatible ferroelectric,…
Ferroelectricity in binary oxides including hafnia and zirconia have riveted the attention of the scientific community due to highly unconventional physical mechanisms and the potential for integration of these materials into semiconductor…
We report a first-principles study of (BaTiO${_3}$)$_m$/(BaO)$_n$ superlattices for a wide range of periodicities $m/n$. We show that such a system develops a polar zone-center instability for sufficiently large \textit{m}/\textit{n} ratio,…
The electronic structure of SrBi2Ta2O9 is investigated from first-principles, within the local density approximation, using the full-potential linearized augmented plane wave (LAPW) method. The results show that, besides the large…
We demonstrate theoretically how, by imposing epitaxial strain in a ferroelectric perovskite, it is possible to achieve a dynamical control of phonon propagation by means of external electric fields, which yields a giant electrophononic…
We performed first principles calculations for epitaxially strained orthorhombic CaTiO$_3$. The computational results reveal the existence of a metastable ferroelectric phase at compressive strain with unexpected in-plane polarization.…
We have fabricated PbTiO$_{3}$/SrRuO$_{3}$ superlattices with ultra-thin SrRuO$_{3}$ layers. Due to the superlattice geometry, the samples show a large anisotropy in their electrical resistivity, which can be controlled by changing the…
The recent observation of a ferroelectric-like structural transition in metallic LiOsO$_3$ has generated a flurry of interest in the properties of polar metals. Such materials are thought to be rare because free electrons screen out the…
The wealth of complex polar topologies recently found in nanoscale ferroelectrics result from a delicate balance between the materials intrinsic tendency to develop a homogeneous polarization and the electric and mechanic boundary…
The perovskite oxide EuTiO3 (ETO) has attracted increased scientific interest due to its potential multiferroic properties and magnetic activity above and below its structural phase transition at TS=282K. Various experiments have indirectly…