Effect of wall thickness on the ferroelastic domain size of BaTiO3

Extremely regular self-organized patterns of 90^o ferroelastic domains have been reported in freestanding single crystal thin films of ferroelectric BaTiO₃. Lukyanchuk et al. [Phys Rev B 79, 144111 (2009)] have recently shown that the domain size as a function of thickness for such free standing films can be well described assuming that the domains are due to stress caused by a surface tension layer that does not undergo the paraelectric–ferroelectric transition. From the starting point of Lukyanchuk’s model, it is shown here that the ‘‘universal’’relationship between domain size and domain wall thickness previously observed in ferroelectrics, ferromagnets and multiferroics is also valid for ferroelastic domains.Further analysis of experimental data also shows that the domain wall thickness can vary considerably (an order of magnitude) from sample to sample even for the same material (BaTiO₃), in spite of which the domain size scaling model is still valid, provided that the correct,sample dependent, domain wall thickness is used.

The Role of Process Parameters in Determining Wall Thickness Distribution in Plug-Assisted Thermoforming

This article describes the results of a comprehensive investigation to determine the link between process parameters and observed wall thickness output for the plug-assisted thermoforming process. The overall objective of the work was to systematically investigate the process parameters that may be adjusted during production to control the wall thickness distribution of parts manufactured by plug-assisted thermoforming. The parameters investigated were the sheet temperature, plug temperature, plug speed, plug displacement, plug shape, and air pressure. As well as quantifying the effects of each parameter on the wall thickness distribution, a further aim of the work was to improve the understanding of the physical mechanisms of deformation of the sheet during the different stages of the process. The process parameters shown to have the greatest effect on experimentally determined wall thickness distribution were the plug displacement, sheet temperature, plug temperature, and plug shape. It is proposed that during the plug-assisted thermoforming of polystyrene the temperature dependent friction between the plug and sheet surface was the most important factor in determining product wall thickness distribution, whereas heat transfer was shown to play a less important role. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2010. © 2010 Society of Plastics Engineers

The Effect of Antinotches on Domain Wall Mobility in Single Crystal Ferroelectric Nanowires

Changes in domain wall mobility, caused by the presence of antinotches in single crystal BaTiO3 nanowires, have been investigated. While antinotches appeared to cause a slight broadening in the distribution of switching events, observed as a function of applied electric field (inferred from capacitance-voltage measurements), the effect was often subtle. Greater clarity of information was obtained from Rayleigh analysis of the capacitance variation with ac field amplitude. Here the magnitude of the domain wall mobility parameter (R) associated with irreversible wall movements was found to be reduced by the presence of antinotches - an effect which became more noticeable on heating toward the Curie temperature. The reduction in this domain wall mobility was contrasted with the noticeable enhancement found previously in ferroelectric wires with notches. Finite element modeling of the electric field, developed in the nanowires during switching, revealed regions of increased and decreased local field at the center of the notch and antinotch structures, respectively; the absolute magnitude of field enhancement in the notch centers was considerably greater than the field reduction in the center of the antinotches and this was commensurate with the manner in, and degree to, which domain wall mobility appeared to be affected. We therefore conclude that the main mechanism by which morphology alters the irreversible component of the domain wall mobility in ferroelectric wire structures is via the manner in which morphological variations alter the spatial distribution of the electric field.