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

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Published on: March 27, 2018

Two-dimensional ferroelectricity in a single-element bismuth monolayer.

Jian Gou¹, Hua Bai^2,3, Xuanlin Zhang²

¹Department of Physics, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore. phygouj@nus.edu.sg.

|April 5, 2023

Summary

Researchers discovered a novel single-element ferroelectric material in a bismuth layer. This breakthrough utilizes ordered charge transfer and atomic distortion, enabling switchable electric polarization without multiple ions.

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Area of Science:

Condensed Matter Physics
Materials Science
Nanotechnology

Background:

Ferroelectric materials exhibit switchable electric polarization due to broken inversion symmetry.
Conventional ferroelectrics require at least two constituent ions for polarization switching.

Purpose of the Study:

To report the observation of a single-element ferroelectric state.
To investigate the mechanism of ferroelectricity in a bismuth monolayer.

Main Methods:

Theoretical investigation of electronic structure and orbital hybridization in bismuth.
Experimental visualization of ferroelectric switching using scanning probe microscopy.

Main Results:

A black phosphorus-like bismuth monolayer exhibits single-element ferroelectricity.
Ordered charge transfer and atomic distortion lead to inversion-symmetry-broken buckled structure.
In-plane electric polarization and ferroelectric switching were experimentally confirmed.

Conclusions:

Single-element ferroelectricity broadens the understanding of ferroelectric mechanisms.
This discovery may lead to new applications in future ferroelectronic devices.