Electron backscatter diffraction as a domain analysis technique in BiFeO(3)-PbTiO(3) single crystals

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Solid State Physics
• Crystallography

Background:

• Bismuth ferrite (BiFeO3) and lead titanate (PbTiO3) are important ferroelectric and multiferroic materials.
• Understanding domain structures is crucial for optimizing their properties.
• Flux method is a common technique for growing single crystals.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the domain configuration of 0.5BiFeO3-0.5PbTiO3 single crystals.
• To demonstrate the capability of electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) for mapping ferroelastic and ferroelectric domains.
• To correlate domain structures with material properties.

Main Methods:

• Single crystals of xBiFeO3-(1-x)PbTiO3 were grown using a flux method.
• Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) was employed to analyze domain structures.
• X-ray diffraction (XRD) was used to determine lattice parameters.

Main Results:

• EBSD successfully mapped ferroelastic domain structures at micron and submicron scales.
• Ferroelastic domains exhibited an approximately 85-degree angle, consistent with a tetragonal system.
• Spontaneous strain (c/a - 1) was determined to be 0.10, matching XRD results.
• Forescatter imaging revealed ferroelectric domain patterns based on polarization vector orientation.

Conclusions:

• EBSD is a powerful tool for characterizing ferroelastic and ferroelectric domain structures in complex oxides.
• The study confirms the tetragonal structure and significant spontaneous strain in 0.5BiFeO3-0.5PbTiO3.
• The findings provide insights into the relationship between domain structure and material properties.