Study of ferroelectrique and multiferroic domain walls in thin films

• Grant number: 13/12423-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate (Direct)
• Start date: August 01, 2013
• End date: July 31, 2017
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Physics - Condensed Matter Physics
• Principal Investigator: Júlio Criginski Cezar
• Grantee: Caroline Lydie Mouls
• Host Institution: Centro Nacional de Pesquisa em Energia e Materiais (CNPEM). Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação (Brasil). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 12/51198-2 - Growth and characterization of the electronic structure of oxides multiferroics heterostructures, AP.JP

Abstract

In this project we propose to study the domain walls of ferroelectric and multiferroic materials. Magnetic domain walls are widely studied due to their strong implication in permanent magnets or magnetic record midia. On the other hand, ferroelectric domain walls are mostly unknown. It is established that they are much narrower than they magnetic counterpart, and recently has been found that even if ferroelectric materials are intrinsically insulators, a conductive phase can develop at the domain walls. This information is vital to the practical application of such materials, once that this property can lead to leakages currents on the walls, but also because such topological effect can be used as information bit, similarly to what was proposed for magnetic domain walls. Nevertheless, as the sizes involved in the ferroelectric domain walls are orders of magnitude smaller than the magnetic case, there is a tremendous potential for ultra dense information storage using the ferroelectric domain walls. In any case, further investigation is need in order the get a better understanding of ferroelectric domain walls, in order to eventually use them for practical applications. (AU)

Academic Publications

(References retrieved automatically from State of São Paulo Research Institutions)

MOULS, Caroline Lydie. Crescimento, caracterização e estudo magnetoelétrico de heteroestruturas ferromagnéticas-ferroelétricas. 2017. Doctoral Thesis - Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Instituto de Física Gleb Wataghin Campinas, SP.