Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Phase Transitions

Phase Transitions

Whether solid, liquid, or gas, a substance's state depends on the order and arrangement of its particles (atoms, molecules, or ions). Particles in the solid pack closely together, generally in a pattern. The particles vibrate about their fixed positions but do not move or squeeze past their neighbors. In liquids, although the particles are closely spaced, they are randomly arranged. The position of the particles are not fixed—that is, they are free to move past their neighbors to...

Phase Transitions: Sublimation and Deposition

Phase Transitions: Sublimation and Deposition

Some solids can transition directly into the gaseous state, bypassing the liquid state, via a process known as sublimation. At room temperature and standard pressure, a piece of dry ice (solid CO2) sublimes, appearing to gradually disappear without ever forming any liquid. Snow and ice sublimate at temperatures below the melting point of water, a slow process that may be accelerated by winds and the reduced atmospheric pressures at high altitudes. When solid iodine is warmed, the solid sublimes...

Phase Transitions: Melting and Freezing

Phase Transitions: Melting and Freezing

Heating a crystalline solid increases the average energy of its atoms, molecules, or ions, and the solid gets hotter. At some point, the added energy becomes large enough to partially overcome the forces holding the molecules or ions of the solid in their fixed positions, and the solid begins the process of transitioning to the liquid state or melting. At this point, the temperature of the solid stops rising, despite the continual input of heat, and it remains constant until all of the solid is...

Phase Transitions: Vaporization and Condensation

Phase Transitions: Vaporization and Condensation

The physical form of a substance changes on changing its temperature. For example, raising the temperature of a liquid causes the liquid to vaporize (convert into vapor). The process is called vaporization—a surface phenomenon. Vaporization occurs when the thermal motion of the molecules overcome the intermolecular forces, and the molecules (at the surface) escape into the gaseous state. When a liquid vaporizes in a closed container, gas molecules cannot escape. As these gas phase molecules...

Chemical Synthesis of Porous Barium Titanate Thin Film and Thermal Stabilization of Ferroelectric Phase by Porosity-Induced Strain

Chemical Synthesis of Porous Barium Titanate Thin Film and Thermal Stabilization of Ferroelectric Phase by Porosity-Induced Strain

Here, we present a protocol for the synthesis of porous barium titanate (BaTiO3) thin film by a surfactant-assisted sol-gel method, in which self-assembled amphipathic surfactant micelles are used as an organic...

A Fabrication and Measurement Method for a Flexible Ferroelectric Element Based on Van Der Waals Heteroepitaxy

A Fabrication and Measurement Method for a Flexible Ferroelectric Element Based on Van Der Waals Heteroepitaxy

In this paper, we present a protocol to directly grow an epitaxial yet flexible lead zirconium titanate memory element on muscovite...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Interface-Driven Growth Mode Control of 2D GaSe on 3D GaAs Substrates with Distinct Crystallographic Orientations.

ACS applied materials & interfaces·2026

Same author

Domain-Wall-Mediated Polarization Switching in Ferroelectric AlScN: Strain Relief and Field-Dependent Dynamics.

Physical review letters·2026

Same author

Light-Driven Ferroic Switching Enables Reversible Control of Hydrogen Adsorption Thermodynamics.

Nano letters·2026

Same author

Author Correction: Magnon confinement in epitaxial antiferromagnetic oxide heterostructures.

Nature materials·2026

Same author

Phase Boundary Enabled High Dielectric Tunability in Ba<sub>1</sub> <sub>-</sub> <sub>x</sub>Sr<sub>x</sub>TiO<sub>3</sub> Thin Films and their Integration on Silicon.

Advanced materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.)·2026

Same author

Magnon confinement in epitaxial antiferromagnetic oxide heterostructures.

Nature materials·2026

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 20, 2026

Phase Transitions and Effect of Intermolecular Forces

Phase Transitions and Effect of Intermolecular Forces

Photoinduced Phase Transitions in Ferroelectrics.

Charles Paillard^1,2, Engin Torun³, Ludger Wirtz³

¹Department of Physics and Institute for Nanoscience and Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701, USA.

Physical Review Letters

|September 7, 2019

Summary

Light can induce phase transitions in ferroelectric materials like lead titanate and barium titanate. This photoinduced effect causes polarization to vanish, potentially forming nonpolar or antiferroelectric phases.

More Related Videos

Sublimation, Deposition and Enthalpy Changes

Sublimation, Deposition and Enthalpy Changes

Melting and Freezing; Energetics of Melting and Fusion

Melting and Freezing; Energetics of Melting and Fusion

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jan 20, 2026

Phase Transitions and Effect of Intermolecular Forces

Phase Transitions and Effect of Intermolecular Forces

Sublimation, Deposition and Enthalpy Changes

Sublimation, Deposition and Enthalpy Changes

Melting and Freezing; Energetics of Melting and Fusion

Melting and Freezing; Energetics of Melting and Fusion

Area of Science:

Condensed Matter Physics
Materials Science
Solid-State Chemistry

Background:

Ferroic materials possess inherent functionalities driven by external stimuli like heat, chemicals, or mechanical stress.
Symmetry breaking and phase transitions are key mechanisms behind these functionalities.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the potential of light as an external stimulus to induce phase transitions in ferroelectric materials.
To explore the underlying mechanisms and resulting structural changes in photoinduced phase transitions.

Main Methods:

Density functional theory (DFT) calculations were employed to model ferroelectric materials.
Phonon analysis and total energy calculations were performed to understand phase stability and transitions.

Main Results:

Light illumination was shown to drive phase transitions in ferroelectric perovskite oxides (lead titanate, barium titanate).
Under illumination, ferroelectric polarization tends to decrease, favoring the emergence of nonpolar phases.
Photoinduced nonpolar phases may exhibit antiferroelectric characteristics and oxygen octahedra tilting.

Conclusions:

Light is a viable stimulus for inducing phase transitions in ferroelectric materials.
Understanding photoinduced phase transitions offers new strategies for material property control.
Tailoring materials for specific photoinduced phases can be achieved by leveraging phonon instabilities.