Scientists have made significant strides in understanding the properties of a ferroelectric material under an electric field. This breakthrough holds potential for advances in computer memory, lasers and sensors for ultraprecise measurements.
Scientists determined the properties of a material in thin-film form that uses a voltage to produce a change in shape and vice versa. Their breakthrough bridges nanoscale and microscale understanding, opening new possibilities for future technologies.
The ferroelectric material is an oxide containing a complex mixture of lead, magnesium, niobium and titanium. Scientists refer to this material as a relaxor ferroelectric. It is characterized by tiny pairs of positive and negative charges, or dipoles, that group into clusters called"polar nanodomains." Under an electric field, these dipoles align in the same direction, causing the material to change shape, or strain.
Using beamlines in sectors 26-ID and 33-ID of Argonne's Advanced Photon Source , Argonne team members mapped the mesoscale structures within the relaxor. Key to the success of this experiment was a specialized capability called coherent X-ray nanodiffraction, available through the Hard X-ray Nanoprobe operated by the Center for Nanoscale Materials at Argonne and the APS. Both are DOE Office of Science user facilities.
"Our insights into the mesoscale structures provide a new approach to the design of smaller electromechanical devices that work in ways not thought possible," Martin said.
Materials Science Electricity Energy Technology Computer Science Spintronics Research Distributed Computing Neural Interfaces
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