Superlattice Engineering in Relaxor Ferroelectric-based Capacitors for Ultra-Highly Efficient Recoverable Energy Storage Density
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Updated: Nov 4, 2026

A Fabrication and Measurement Method for a Flexible Ferroelectric Element Based on Van Der Waals Heteroepitaxy
Published on: April 8, 2018
Matilde M G S Oliveira1,2, Ampattu R Jayakrishnan1,2, Duarte J M Ribeiro1,2
1Physics Center of Minho and Porto Universities (CF-UM-UP), University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057, Braga, Portugal.
Abstract:
In this work, we show that superlattice engineering, through the combination of relaxor ferroelectric 0.5Ba(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3-0.5(Ba0.7Ca0.3)TiO3 and paraelectric SrTiO3 layers, is a powerful approach to simultaneously optimize energy density and efficiency of recoverable energy storage at low applied electric fields, outperforming both single layer 0.5Ba(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3-0.5(Ba0.7Ca0.3)TiO3 thin film and other lead-free ferroelectric and relaxor ferroelectric thin film capacitors. The mechanisms responsible are a) decreasing the size of polar nanoregions which promote relaxor behavior by superlattice confinement and b) formation of a strain gradient in the superlattice which plays a significant role in modification of the built-in electric field, to enhance imprint, allowing for further enhancement of the energy storage performance. Overall, our interface-engineered Pb-free 0.5Ba(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3-0.5(Ba0.7Ca0.3)TiO3/SrTiO3 superlattices show record dielectric energy storage efficiency close to 99% at 920 kV/cm, with high recoverable energy storage density of 12.6 J/cm3, significantly outperforming other lead-free ferroelectric and relaxor ferroelectric thin film capacitors. Our thin film system meets the performance requirements for environmentally friendly energy storage devices for future self-powered electronics.
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