Related papers: The ferroelectric transition in YMnO$_3$ from firs…
The structural, dielectric and dynamical properties of the low temperature antiferromagnetic orthorhombic phase of CaMnO$_3$ have been computed from first principles using a density functional theory approach within the local spin density…
A complete mapping in the Brillouin zone of the structural instability associated with the ferroelectric phase transitions of KNbO$_3$ has been obtained by first-principles calculations using an LAPW linear response approach. The wavevector…
Recent interests towards novel functionalities arising at domain walls of ferroic materials naturally call for a microscopic understanding. To this end, first-principles calculations have been performed in order to provide solid evidence of…
We investigate the phase diagrams of RMn$_2$O$_5$ via a first-principles effective-Hamiltonian method. We are able to reproduce the most important features of the complicated magnetic and ferroelectric phase transitions. The calculated…
In this contribution to the special issue on magnetoelectrics and their applications, we focus on some single phase multiferroics theoretically predicted and/or experimentally discovered by the authors in recent years. In these materials,…
The (H,T)-phase diagram of the multiferroic perovskite TbMnO$_3$ was studied by high-resolution thermal expansion $\alpha(T)$ and magnetostriction $\Delta L(H)/L$ measurements. Below $T_{N}\simeq 42$ K, TbMnO$_3$ shows antiferromagnetic…
We present the microscopic theory of improper multiferroicity in BiMnO3, which can be summarized as follows: (1) the ferroelectric polarization is driven by the hidden antiferromagnetic order in the otherwise centrosymmetric C2/c structure;…
Size-driven transition of an antiferroelectric into a polar ferroelectric or ferrielectric state is a strongly debated issue from both experimental and theoretical perspectives. While critical thickness limits for such transitions have been…
First-principles density-functional calculations reveal a large spin-phonon coupling in cubic SrMnO$_{3}$, with ferromagnetic ordering producing a polar instability. Through combination of this coupling with the strain-polarization coupling…
Using first-principles density functional theory we predict a ferroelectric ground state -- driven by off-centering of the magnetic Mn$^{4+}$ ion -- in perovskite-structure BaMnO$_3$. Our finding is surprising, since the competition between…
We have investigated the dielectric properties of Gd$_{1-x}$Tb$_{x}$MnO$_{3}$ crystals in magnetic fields to clarify the crossover between two distinct ferroelectric phases, GdMnO$_{3}$-type (first-order displacive) and TbMnO$_{3}$-type…
We present an ab initio study of the BFCO solid solution formed by multiferroics BiFeO3 (BFO) and BiCoO3 (BCO). We find that BFCO presents a strongly discontinuous morphotropic transition between BFO-like and BCO-like ferroelectric phases.…
Electronic ferroelectricity from charge ordering (CO) is currently a significant issue that has been extensively investigated in the charge/spin frustrated LuFe2O4 system. Chemical substitution and structural layer intercalation have been…
We have investigated the magnetic and dielectric properties of orthorhombic Eu$_{1-y}$Y$_y$MnO$_3$ ($0\leq y\leq 0.6$) single crystals without the presence of the 4$f$ magnetic moments of the rare-earth ions. In $y\geq 0.2$, the…
Tuning the lattice degree of freedom in nanoscale functional crystals is critical to exploit the emerging functionalities such as piezoelectricity, shape-memory effect, or piezomagnetism, which are attributed to the intrinsic lattice-polar…
We discuss relative roles played by the magnetic inversion symmetry breaking and the ferroelectric (FE) atomic displacements in the multiferroic state of YMnO3. For these purposes we derive a realistic low-energy model, using results of…
Materials that combine magnetic and ferroelectric properties have generated increasing interest over the last few years, due to both their diverse properties and their potential utility in new types of magnetoelectric device applications.…
We present a detailed study of the structural behavior and polarization reversal mechanism in phase III of KNO$_3$, an unusual ferroelectric material in which the nitrate groups rotate during polarization reversal. This material was one of…
Some of the Multiferroics [1] form a rare class of materials that exhibit magnetoelectric coupling arising from the coexistence of ferromagnetism and ferroelectricity, with potential for many technological applications.[2,3] Over the last…
By performing first-principles calculations, we systematically explore the effect of epitaxial strain on the structure and properties of multiferroic TbMnO3. We show that, although the unstrained bulk TbMnO3 displays a non-collinear…