The thesis entitled “Structure-function control in organic co-crystals/salts via studies on polymorphism, phase transitions and stoichiometric variants” consists of five chapters. The main emphasis of the thesis is on two aspects, one to characterize co-crystal polymorphism in terms of propensity of intermolecular interactions to form co-crystals/salts or eutectics. The other aspect is to explore the feasibility of using such co-crystals/salts to exhibit properties like proton conduction, dielectric and ferroelectric behaviour. Gallic acid and its analogues possess functionalities to provide extensive hydrogen bonding capabilities and are chosen as the main component while the coformers are carefully selected such that they either accept or reject the hydrogen bonding offered. Such co-crystallization experiments therefore provide an opportunity to unravel the intricate details of the formation of crystalline polymorphs and/or eutectics at the molecular level. Further these co-crystal systems have been exploited to evaluate proton conductivity, dielectric and ferroelectric features since the focus is also on the design aspect of functional materials. In the context of identifying and utilizing Crystal Engineering tools, the discussions in the following chapters address not only the structural details but identify the required patterns and motifs to enable the design of multi-component co-crystals/salts and eutectics. In particular, the presence/absence of lattice water in gallic acid has been evaluated in terms of importing the required physical property to the system. Chapter 1 discusses the structural features of tetramorphic anhydrous co-crystals (1:1; which are synthon polymorphs) generated from a methanolic solution of gallic acid monohydrate and acetamide, all of which convert to a stable form on complete drying. The pathway to the stable form (1:3 co-crystal) is explained based on the variability in the hydrogen bonding patterns followed by lattice energy calculations. Chapter 2A studies the presence/absence and geometric disposition of hydroxyl functionality on hydroxybenzoic acids to drive the formation of co-crystal/eutectic in imide-carboxylic acid combinations. In Chapter 2B the crystal form diversity of gallic acid-succinimide co-crystals are evaluated with major implications towards the design and control of targeted multi-component crystal forms. The co-crystal obtained in this study shows a rare phenomenon of concomitant solvation besides concomitant polymorphism and thus making it difficult to obtain a phase-pure crystal form in bulk quantity. This issue has been resolved and formation of desired target solid form is demonstrated. Thus, this study addresses the nemesis issues of co-crystallization with implications in comprehending the kinetics and thermodynamics of the phenomenon in the goal of making desired materials. Chapter 3 focuses on the systematic co-crystallization of hydroxybenzoic acids with hexamine using liquid assisted grinding (LAG) which show facile solid state interconversion among different stoichiometric variants. The reversible interconversion brought about by varying both the acid and base components in tandem is shown to be a consequence of hydrogen bonded synthon modularity present in the crystal structures analyzed in this context. In Chapter 4A, the rationale for the proton conduction in hydrated/anhydrous salt/co-crystal of gallic acid - isoniazid is provided in terms of the structural characteristics and the conduction pathway is identified to follow Grotthuss like mechanism which is supplemented by theoretical calculations. Chapter 4B describes an extensive examination of the hydrated salt of gallic acid-isoniazid which unravels the irreversible nature of the dielectric property upon dehydration and suggests that the “ferroelectric like” behaviour is indeed not authenticated. This chapter brings out the significance role of lattice water in controlling the resulting physical property (dielectric/ferroelectric in this case). Chapter 5 describes the structural features of two hydrated quaternary salts of hydroxybenzoic acids-isoniazid-sulfuric acid and the phase transitions at both low and high temperatures are shown to be reversible. Single Crystal to Single Crystal (SCSC) in situ measurement corroborated by thermal and in situ Powder X-ray Diffraction studies proves the claim. Further, the properties exhibited by these materials are also governed by lattice water content.

Piezoelectric materials find use as actuators and sensors in automotive, aerospace and other related industries. Automotive applications such as fuel injection nozzles and engine health monitoring systems require operating temperatures as high as 300-500 oC. The commercially used piezoelectric material PbZr1-xTixO3 (PZT) is limited to operating temperatures as low as 200 oC due to the temperature induced depolarization effects. PZT, in the undoped state exhibits a piezoelectric coefficient (d33) of 223 pC/N and ferroelectric-paraelectric transition temperature (Tc) of 386 oC. The enhanced properties of PZT occur at a region between the tetragonal and rhombohedral phases, called the Morphotropic Phase Boundary (MPB). Therefore, search for new materials with higher thermal stability and better sensing capabilities were focused on systems that exhibit a PZT-like MPB. This led to the discovery of (x)BiScO3-(1-x)PbTiO3 (BSPT), which exhibits an MPB with enhanced Tc (450 oC) and exceptionally high piezoelectric response (d33 = 460 pC/N). Theoretical studies have shown that the mechanism of enhanced piezoresponse in ferroelectric systems is related to the anisotropic flattening of the free energy profiles. An alternative view point attributes the anomalous piezoelectric response to the presence of high density of low energy domain walls near an inter-ferroelectric transition. Diffraction is a versatile tool to study the structural and microstructural changes of ferroelectric systems upon application of electric field. However, characterization of electric field induced structural and microstructural changes is not a trivial task, since in situ electric field dependent diffraction studies almost invariably give diffraction patterns laden with strong preferred orientation effects, due to the tendency of the ferroelectric/ferroelastic domains to align along the field direction. Additionally, diffraction profiles of MPB compositions exhibit severe overlap of Bragg peaks of the coexisting phases, and hence, it is difficult to ascertain with certainty, if the alteration in the intensity profiles upon application of electric field is due to change in phase fraction of the coexisting phases or due to preferred orientation induced in the different phases by the electric field. The characterization of electric field induced phase transformation in MPB systems, has therefore eluded researchers and has been considered of secondary importance, presumably due to the difficulties in unambiguously establishing the structural changes upon application of electric field. In fact, majority of the in situ electric field dependent diffraction studies have been carried out on compositions just outside the MPB range, i.e. on single phase compositions. In such studies, the focus has been mainly on explaining the piezoelectric response in terms of motions of the non-180° domain walls and field induced lattice strains. In this dissertation, the BSPT system has been systematically investigated with the view to understand the role of different contributing factors to the anomalous piezoelectric response of compositions close to the MPB. Using a comparative in situ electric field dependent diffraction study on a core MPB composition exhibiting highest piezoelectric response and a single phase monoclinic (pseudo-rhombohedral) composition just outside the MPB, it is demonstrated that, inspite of the significantly large domain switching and lattice strain (obtained from peak shifts) in the single phase composition, as compared to the MPB composition, the single phase composition shows considerably low piezoelectric response. This result clearly revealed that the anomalous piezoelectric response of the MPB composition is primarily associated with field induced inter-ferroelectric transformation and the corresponding field induced interphase boundary motion. A simple strategy has been employed to establish the field induced structural transformation for the MPB compositions, by overcoming the experimental limitation of in situ electric field dependent diffraction studies. The idea stemmed from the fact that, if the specimens for diffraction study can be used in powder form instead of pellet, the problems associated with preferred orientation effects can be eliminated, and the nature of field induced structural changes can be accurately determined. A comparative study of the diffraction profiles from poled (after subjecting the specimen to electric field) and unpoled (before subjecting the specimen to electric field) powders could precisely establish the nature of electric field induced phase transformation for the MPB compositions of BSPT and provided a direct correlation between the electric field induced structural changes and the enhanced piezoelectric response. A new ‘powder poling’ technique was devised, which involves application of electric field to powder form of the specimen. Using this technique, it was possible to study separately, the effect of stress and electric field on the nature of structural transformation. A unique outcome of this study was, it could demonstrate for the first time, analogous nature of the stress and electric field induced structural transformation. A comparative study of the dielectric response of poled and unpoled samples was used to show a counterintuitive phenomenon of field induced decrease in polarization coherence for the MPB compositions. This approach was used to suggest that the criticality associated with the MPB extends beyond the composition boundary conventionally reported in literature based on bulk diffraction techniques (x-ray and neutron powder diffraction). The layout of the dissertation is as follows: Chapter 1 gives a brief introduction of the fundamental concepts related to ferroelectric materials. The theories that explain the enhanced piezoresponse of MPB based ferroelectric systems have been outlined. Detailed information of the existing literature is presented in the relevant chapters. Chapter 2 presents the details of the solid state synthesis of BSPT compositions and structural analysis using diffraction studies. The dielectric measurements were used to establish the Tc for the different compositions. The enhanced ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties were observed for the MPB compositions, which were shown to exhibit coexistence of tetragonal and monoclinic phases from structural studies. The critical MPB composition exhibiting highest piezoelectric and ferroelectric properties was established to be x = 0.3725. The thermal stability of the critical MPB composition was established to be 400 oC using ex situ thermal depolarization studies. The common approach of structural analysis in the unpoled state failed to provide a unique relationship between the anomalous piezoelectric response and the structural factors at the MPB, emphasizing the need to characterize these system using electric field dependent structural studies. Chapter 3 presents the results of in situ electric field dependent diffraction measurements carried out at Argonne National Laboratory, USA. The quasi-static field measurements could successfully quantify the non-180o domain switching fractions and the field induced lattice strains. The changes in the integrated intensities were used to obtain the non-180o domain switching fraction and the shift in peak positions were used to quantify the field induced lattice strains. The in situ studies could successfully explain the macroscopic strain response for the single phase pseudo-rhombohedral (monoclinic) composition on the basis of domain switching mechanisms and field induced lattice strains. The MPB compositions were shown to have additional contributions from interphase boundary motion, resulting from change in phase fraction of the coexisting phases. The results emphasized the need to investigate the electric field induced transformation for MPB compositions, in order to give a comprehensive picture of the various contributions to the macroscopic piezoreponse. While Rietveld analysis could be used to investigate the phase transformation behaviour upon application of electric field, textured diffraction profiles obtained using in situ studies, in addition to the severely overlapping Bragg reflections of the coexisting phases for the MPB compositions hindered reliable estimation of the structural parameters. An alternate approach to investigate the field induced phase transformation is presented in Chapter 4. The stroboscopic measurements on the MPB composition showed evidence of non-180o domain wall motion even at sub-coercive field amplitudes as low as 0.1 kV/mm. Chapter 4 presents the results of the ex situ electric field dependent structural study, wherein the diffraction profiles collected from poled powders is compared to that of unpoled powders. The diffraction profiles from the poled powders did not exhibit any field induced crystallographic texture and could successfully be analyzed using Rietveld analysis. High resolution synchrotron diffraction studies (ESRF, France) carried out on closely spaced compositions revealed that, the composition exhibiting the highest piezoelectric response is the one, which exhibits significantly enhanced lattice polarizability of both the coexisting (monoclinic and tetragonal) phases. The enhanced lattice polarizability manifests as significant fraction of the monoclinic phase transforming irreversibly to the tetragonal phase after electric poling. The monoclinic to tetragonal transformation suggested the existence of a low energy polarization rotation pathway towards the [001]pc direction in the (1 1 0)pc pseudocubic plane of the monoclinic phase. The results are discussed on the basis of the existing theories that explain piezoresponse in MPB systems and are in support of the Polarization rotation model, in favor of a genuine monoclinic phase. Chapter 5 discusses the ferroelectric-ferroelectric stability of the MPB compositions in response to externally applied stress and electric field independently. Using the newly developed ‘powder poling’ technique, which is based on the concept of exploiting the irreversible structural changes that occur after application of electric field and stress independently, it was possible to ascertain that, both moderate stress and electric field induce identical structural transformation - a fraction of the monoclinic phase transforms irreversibly to the tetragonal phase. The powder poling technique was also used to demonstrate field induced inter-ferroelectric transformation at sub-coercive field amplitudes. In addition, the analysis of the dielectric response before and after poling revealed a counterintuitive phenomenon of poling induced decrease in the spatial coherence of polarization for compositions around the MPB and not so for compositions far away from the MPB range. Exploiting the greater sensitivity of this technique, it was demonstrated that, the criticality associated with the inter-ferroelectric transition spans a wider composition range than what is conventionally reported in the literature based on bulk x-ray/neutron powder diffraction techniques. Chapter 6 presents the closure and important conclusions from the present work and summarizes the key results, highlighting the proposed mechanism of enhanced piezoresponse in BSPT. The last part of the chapter deals with suggestions for future work from the ideas evolved in the present study. vi

Ce travail porte sur la synthèse et la caractérisation de nouveaux matériaux multiferroïques basés sur le concept très récent de la Ferroélectricité Hybride Impropre.Deux classes de matériaux ont été envisagées : les oxydes de type Ruddlesden-Popper NaRMO4 (R=Y, La; M= Mn, Cr) et les doubles pérovskites ordonnées NaLnCoWO6 (Ln= Y, La, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, and Yb). Les essais de synthèse sur la première classe n’ont pas permis d’obtenir les composés visés. Pour la seconde classe, l’ensemble des composés ont pu être obtenus par synthèse par voie solide à haute température. Les composés NaLnCoWO6 (Ln=La, Pr, Nd) ont été synthétisés à pression ambiante. L’usage des techniques de Hautes Pressions – Hautes Températures (HP-HT) a permis de stabiliser les composés contenant des terres rares plus petites et d’obtenir ainsi neuf nouveaux composés aux propriétés inédites.L’utilisation combinée de la diffraction sur poudre des rayons X au synchrotron et des neutrons a permis une étude structurale fine de la famille des doubles pérovskites ordonnées NaLnCoWO6. Les groupes d’espace ont été déterminés grâce aux affinements Rietveld des diffractogrammes de Rayons X sur poudre haute résolution. Les composés NaLnCoWO6 (Ln=La, Pr, Nd) cristallisent dans le groupe d’espace centrosymétrique C2/m tandis que les 9 nouveaux composés (Ln= Y, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, and Yb) cristallisent dans le groupe d’espace polaire P21. Des mesures de génération de seconde harmonique confirment la structure non-centrosymétrique des nouveaux composés. L’analyse adaptée des modes de symétrie des composés cristallisant dans la structure polaire montre que l’amplitude du mode polaire induit augmente avec la diminution de la taille du cation Ln3+. La polarisation estimée à partir des affinements de la structure pourrait atteindre jusqu’à ~20µC/cm2.Une transition de phase présentant une très large hystérésis en température (~150K) a été observée par diffraction des neutrons pour le composé NaLaCoWO6. De plus, les images obtenues en Microscopie Electronique en Transmission révèlent la présence de bandes dans la phase haute température. Cette superstructure présente une périodicité de 12ap selon la direction [100]p ou [010]p . On a pu montrer à l’aide d’observations en STEM (microscopie à balayage en transmission) combinées avec des mesures en EELS (spectroscopie de pertes d’énergie des électrons) que ce contraste de bandes n’est pas lié à une variation de composition mais bien à une variation structurale. Différents modèles de rotations des octaèdres d’oxygènes ont été élaborés pour valider les données expérimentales obtenues par diffraction des rayons X et de neutrons. Le schéma de rotation qui décrit au mieux les données est a-a-c0. Concernant la phase basse température le groupe d’espace attribué est le groupe polaire P21.Les caractérisations magnétiques ont été réalisées pour toutes ces phases. Tous les composés NaLnCoWO6 s’ordonnent dans une configuration antiferromagnétique. Les températures de Néel varient entre 4 et 13K en fonction de la nature de la terre-rare. Les moments effectifs déterminés par la loi de Curie-Weiss sont en accord avec les moments théoriques attendus. Toutes les températures de Weiss sont négatives traduisant le fait que les interactions antiferromagnétiques sont prépondérantes dans ces systèmes. Les structures magnétiques ont été déterminées pour les composés Ln= Y, La, Tb, and Ho. Pour ces mêmes composés, des mesures diélectriques en fonction de la température et du champ magnétique ont permis de mettre en évidence un couplage magnéto-diélectrique conséquent pour Ln=Y and Ho. Les mesures de courant pyroélectrique autour de la transition magnétique montrent qu’il existe une polarisation induite par l’ordre magnétique dans le composé NaYCoWO6.. C’est la première mise en évidence expérimentale d’un couplage magnéto-électrique dans la famille des doubles pérovskites ordonnées AA’BB’O6. / In this study, new magneto-electric materials were synthesized on the basis of the very recently recognized ferroelectric inducing mechanism, hybrid improper ferroelectricity, and structural and physical properties characterizations were carried out on these new phases.Two classes of materials were focused on: the Ruddlesden-Popper oxides NaRMO4 (R=Y, La; M= Mn, Cr) and the doubly ordered perovskites NaLnCoWO6 (Ln= Y, La, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, and Yb). Attempts to synthesize the former class failed to give the target phases. All compounds in the latter class were prepared successfully by solid-state reactions at high temperature, among which the compounds NaLnCoWO6 (Ln=La, Pr, Nd) were prepared at ambient pressure while the other nine compounds were synthesized at high pressure.The structural study of the doubly ordered perovskite family NaLnCoWO6 was performed by synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction (SXRPD) and neutron powder diffraction (NPD). Based on the Rietveld refinement of the SXRPD patterns, the space groups were assigned. NaLnCoWO6 (Ln=La, Pr, Nd) compounds crystallize in the centrosymmetric C2/m symmetry, whereas the other nine new compounds crystallize in the polar space group P21. Second harmonic generation measurements on powder confirmed the non-centrosymmetric structure of the new compounds. Symmetry mode analysis demonstrates that the amplitude of the induced polar mode increases with a decreasing Ln cation size. The amplitude of the polarization was estimated from the refined structures, and can be as large as ~20µC/cm2.A structural phase transition was observed by NPD in NaLaCoWO6 with a large temperature hysteresis of ~150K. In addition, stripes were observed on the high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images in the high temperature phase. The periodicity of this superstructure is 12ap along either the [100]p or [010]p direction. Further investigations by scanning TEM and electron energy loss spectroscopy revealed that the contrast of the stripes is due to a structural modulation rather than a compositional variation. Octahedral tilt twinning models were built with different tilting schemes to fit the observed SXRPD and NPD patterns. The tilting scheme a-a-c0 describes successfully the data. The low temperature phase was unambiguously determined to possess the polar space group P21.Magnetic and electric properties were experimentally characterized. All NaLnCoWO6 compounds order antiferromagnetically below TN which is between 4 and 13K. Curie-Weill fits were performed for all compounds, yielding reasonable effective magnetic moments compared to the theoretical ones. Weiss temperatures were all determined to be negative further indicating that antiferromagnetic interactions are dominant in these systems. Magnetic structures were determined for four NaLnCoWO6 (Ln= Y, La, Tb, and Ho) compounds, of which two have non-magnetic Ln cations (Y and La) and two have magnetic ones (Tb and Ho). Magneto-dielectric coupling was experimentally observed in compounds NaLnCoWO6 (Ln=Y, Tb, Ho) by dielectric measurements as a function of temperature and magnetic field. Polarization was derived for the Y and Ho compounds from pyroelectric current measurement, however, only the NaYCoWO6 compound demonstrates a polar behavior which cannot be switched. This is the first evidence that electric polarization can be induced by the magnetic ordering in the AA’BB’O6 class materials.

Dans cette thèse, nous présentons des études théoriques de matériaux pérovskites sous con-trainte mécanique uniaxiale en combinant les calculs de premier principe DFT ainsi quela théorie phénoménologique de type Landau. Les pérovskites ABO3 forment une classetrès importante de matériaux fonctionnels, qui peuvent présenter un large éventail de pro-priétés (e.g., supraconductivité, magnétisme, ferroélectricité, multiferroïcité, transitionsmétal-isolant. . . ) grâce aux petites distorsions d’ une même structure prototype cubique.Bien que ces composés aient été largement étudiés expérimentalement et théoriquement, ilreste encore des questions importantes et non résolues concernant les effets de contraintesuniaxiales. Au cours de ces dernières années, l’ ingénierie de contrainte a été décrite commeune approche originale pour ajuster les propriétés ferroélectriques pérovskites ABO3. Alorsque les effets de tension épitaxié-biaxiale et pression la hydrostatique, sont plutôt bien com-pris dans cette classe de matériaux, très peu est connu en ce qui concerne l’ effet des con-traintes mécaniques uniaxiales. Notre étude est motivée par ce manque de compréhensionactuelle de l’ effet de tension et compression uniaxiale, qui a été jusqu’à présent presquetotalement négligé. Deux composés prototypes sont étudiés dans le détail: PbTiO3 etSrTiO3. Après une introduction générale sur les composés ABO3 et les calculs techniques(ab initio et modèle phénoménologique de Landau), nous avons étudié l’ effet de contraintesmécaniques sur ces matériaux dans notre thèse.PbTiO3 est un composé ferroélectrique prototypique et également l’ un des composantsmère de la solution solide Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 (PZT), qui est le piézoélectrique le plus largementutilisé dans des applications. Pour PbTiO3, nous avons montré que indépendammentde la contrainte mécanique uniaxiale appliquée, le système conserve un état fondamentalpurement ferroélectrique avec la polarisation alignée, soit le long de la direction de lacontrainte (en phase FEz) ou bien le long d’ un des axes pseudo-cubique, qui lui estperpendiculaire (phase de FEx). Cela contraste avec les cas de contraintes mécaniquesisotropes ou bi-axial, pour qui de nouvelles phases combinant des modes ferroélectriqueset antiferrodistortives ont déjà été décrites. Sous contrainte uniaxiale, PbTiO3 passe d’unétat fondamental FEx sous compression à un état fondamental FEz en tension au-delà d’une tension critique !czz! +1%. Sous contrainte uniaxiale, PbTiO3 présente soit un étatfondamental FEx sous compression ("zz < 0) ou un état fondamental de FEz sous tension("zz > 0). Cependant, ici, un brusque saut des paramètres structuraux est prévu sousdes contraintes de compression et de traction à des valeurs critiques "zz! +2 GPa et −8GPa. Ce comportement semble similaire à celui pré-prédit sous pression isotrope négativeet pourrait se révéler utile en pratique pour améliorer la réponse piézoélectrique dans lesnano-composants.Le deuxième composé intéressant est SrTiO3. Il a été largement étudié au cours desdernières décennies, en raison de ses propriétés exceptionnelles à basse température. Dansce travail, nous avons élargi nos précédentes études de PbTiO3, en explorant théorique-ment les effets de pression sur la perovskite SrTiO3, combinant les premiers principes decalculs et un modèle phénoménologique de type Landau. Nous avons discuté de l’évolutiondes fréquences des phonons de SrTiO3 des trois cas de contraintes isotrope, uniaxial ettensions biaxiaux en utilisant les calculs de premier principe. Nous confirmons des travauxexpérimentaux précédents sur SrTiO3 que ça soit en contrainte épitaxiée ou sous pressionhydrostatique. Enfin, nous avons calculé de diagramme de phase de SrTiO3 sous contrainteuniaxiale, obtenue à partir de la théorie de Landau que nous avons comparé aux calculsde premier principe. / In the present thesis we present theoretical studies of perovskite compounds under uniax-ial mechanical constraints combining first-principles DFT calculations approach and phe-nomenological Landau theory. ABO3 perovskites form a very important class of functionalmaterials that can exhibit a broad range of properties (e.g., superconductivity, magnetism,ferroelectricity, multiferroism, metal-insulator transitions. . . ) within small distortions ofthe same simple prototype cubic structure. Though these compounds have been exten-sively studied both experimentally and computationally, there are still unresolved issuesregarding the effect of pressure. In recent years, strain engineering has reported to bean original approach to tune the ferroelectric properties of perovskite ABO3 compounds.While the effect of epitaxial biaxial strain and hydrostatic strain is rather well understoodin this class of materials, very little is yet known regarding the effect of uniaxial mechanicalconstraints. Our study is motivated by the little existing understanding of the effect ofuniaxial strain and stress, that has been up to now almost totally neglected. Two proto-type compounds are studied in detail: PbTiO3 and SrTiO3. After a general introductionon ABO3 compounds and calculations techniques (ab initio and phenomenological Landaumodel), we studied the effect of mechanical constraints in these compounds in our thesis.PbTiO3 is a prototypical ferroelectric compound and also one of the parent components ofthe Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 solid solution (PZT), which is the most widely used piezoelectrics. ForPbTiO3, we have shown that irrespectively of the uniaxial mechanical constraint applied,the system keeps a purely ferroelectric ground-state, with the polarization aligned eitheralong the constraint direction (FEz phase) or along one of the pseudocubic axis perpen-dicular to it (FEx phase). This contrasts with the case of isotropic or biaxial mechanicalconstraints for which novel phases combining ferroelectric and antiferrodistortive motionshave been previously reported. Under uniaxial strain, PbTiO3 switches from a FEx groundstate under compressive strain to FEz ground-state under tensile strain, beyond a critical strain !czz! +1%. Under uniaxial stress, PbTiO3 exhibits either a FEx ground state undercompression ("zz < 0) or a FEz ground state under tension ("zz > 0). Here, however, anabrupt jump of the structural parameters is also predicted under both compressive andtensile stresses at critical values "zz! +2 GPa and −8 GPa. This behavior appears similarto that predicted under negative isotropic pressure and might reveal practically useful toenhance the piezoelectric response in nanodevices.The second compound of interest is SrTiO3. It has been widely studied in the past decadesdue to its unusual properties at low temperature. In this work, we have extended ourprevious investigations on PbTiO3 by exploring theoretically the pressure effects on per-ovskite SrTiO3 combining the first-principles calculations and a phenomenological Landaumodel. We have discussed the evolution of phonon frequencies of SrTiO3 with the threeisotropic, uniaxial and biaxial strains using first-principles calculations. We also reproducethe previous work done in SrTiO3 with epitaxial strain and hydrostatic strain. Finally,we have calculated the phase diagram of SrTiO3 under uniaxial strain, as obtained fromLandau theory and discussed how it compares with the first-principles calculations.

In this work we present a theoretical and computational study of the mechanism of ferroelectricity in multiferroic hexagonal manganite LuMnO3. Some structural and electronic properties are described in both paraelectric (PE) and ferroelectric (FE) phases. As theoretical and computation tool was employed the Full Potential Linear Augmented Plane Wave method, based on Density Functional Theory and embodied in WIEN2k computer code. The crystal structure of both PE and FE phases was optimized using two different types of exchange and correlation potentials. The local density approximation (LDA) and generalized gradient approximation (GGA). The lattice parameters from GGA calculation were obtained in better agreement with experimental than LDA result. Also, were analyzed two different GGA parameterizations: the so-called Perdew - Burke - Ernzerhof (PBE) and Wu - Cohen (WC). Comparing them, the result from GGA-PBE calculation is in better agreement with the experimental. After the structural optimization, the atomic positions were fully relaxed. In this step, was utilized the GGA with the PBE parameterization. The electronic properties were calculated from these optimized and relaxed structures and using the Tran and Blaha modified Becke-Johson potential. From these calculations were obtained an indirect band gap of 0,3 eV and a direct band gap of 1,6 eV in the PE and FE phases, respectively. The valence electronic density maps were obtained along the c axis of the phases PE and FE. It was observed when leave of the PE to the FE phase, the ionic character of Lu-O bonds was changed. By careful analysis of the calculated partial density of states, we showed that the loss of ionicity of the chemical bond is associated with the rehybridization of the 5dz2 - Lu with 2pz - O orbitals. This description corroborates with the model in which the mechanism of ferroelectricity of the hexagonal manganites is related with the rehybridization of the dz2 - Y or - Lu orbitals with 2pz - O s orbitals that are along the crystalline c axis. / No presente trabalho foi realizado um estudo teórico e computacional sobre o mecanismo da ferroeletricidade na manganita hexagonal multiferróica LuMnO3. Foram obtidas algumas das propriedades estruturais e eletrônicas desse composto nas fases paraelétrica (PE) e ferroelétrica (FE). Como ferramenta teórica e computacional foi utilizado o método de cálculo de estrutura eletrônica denominado de Full Potential Linearized Augmented Plane Wave que é baseado na Teoria do Funcional da Densidade e implementado no código computacional WIEN2k. Foi realizada a otimização dos parâmetros de rede usando duas diferentes aproximações para o potencial de troca e correlação. A aproximação da densidade local (LDA) e a do gradiente generalizado (GGA). Os parâmetros de rede obtidos com o cálculo GGA foram mais próximos do experimental do que aqueles obtidos usando a aproximação LDA. Para o cálculo usando a aproximação GGA foram testadas duas formas de parametrização: Perdew - Burke - Ernzerhof (PBE) e Wu - Cohen (WC). Nesse caso, o resultado obtido com a parametrização PBE é a que melhor se compara com o resultado experimental. Após a otimização dos parâmetros de rede, foram relaxadas as posições atômicas. Nessa etapa do cálculo, foi utilizada a aproximação GGA-PBE. Para o cálculo da estrutura eletrônica, foi usado o potencial modificado de troca de Becke-Johnson (mBJ). Com ele foi possível obter um band gap indireto de 0,3 eV na fase PE e um band gap direto de 1,6 eV na fase FE. Foram obtidos mapas de densidade eletrônica valência ao longo do eixo c cristalino das fases PE e FE. Observou-se, saindo da fase PE para a FE, que o caráter iônico da ligação Lu - O foi alterado. A análise da densidade de estados parciais mostrou que a perda da ionicidade da ligação química está associada à rehibridização dos orbitais 5dz2 do Lu com os orbitais 2pz do O. Esta descrição corrobora com o modelo em que o mecanismo da ferroeletricidade das manganitas hexagonais está associado à rehibridização dos orbitais dz2 do átomo R (Lu ou Y) com os orbitais 2pz dos átomos de oxigênio que estão ao longo do eixo cristalino c.

Charged domain walls (CDWs) in proper ferroelectrics are a novel route towards the creation of advancing functional electronics. At CDWs the spontaneous polarization obeying the ferroelectric order alters abruptly within inter-atomic distances. Upon screening, the resulting charge accumulation may result in the manifestation of novel fascinating electrical properties. Here, we will focus on electrical conduction. A major advantage of these ferroelectric DWs is the ability to control its motion upon electrical fields. Hence, electrical conduction can be manipulated, which can enrich the possibilities of current electronic devices e.g. in the field of reconfigurability, fast random access memories or any kind of adaptive electronic circuitry. In this dissertation thesis, I want to shed more light onto this new type of interfacial electronic conduction on inclined DWs mainly in lithium niobate/LiNbO3 (LNO). The expectation was: the stronger the DW inclination towards the polar axis of the ferroelectric order and, hence, the larger the bound polarization charge, the larger the conductivity to be displayed. The DW conductance and the correlation with polarization charge was investigated with a multitude of experimental methods as scanning probe microscopy, linear and nonlinear optical microscopy as well as electron microscopy. We were able to observe a clear correlation of the local DW inclination angle with the DW conductivity by comparing the three-dimensional DW data and the local DW conductance. We investigated the conduction mechanisms on CDWs by temperature-dependent two-terminal current-voltage sweeps and were able to deduce the transport to be given by small electron polaron hopping, which are formed after injection into the CDWs. The thermal activated transport is in very good agreement with time-resolved polaron luminescence spectroscopy. The applicability of this effect for non-volatile memories was investigated in metal-ferroelectric-metal stacks with CMOS compatible single-crystalline films. These films showed unprecedented endurance, retention, precise set voltage, and small leakage currents as expected for single crystalline material. The conductance was tuned and switched according to DW switching time and voltage. The formation of CDWs has proven to be extremely stable over at least two months. The conductivity was further investigated via microwave impedance microscopy, which revealed a DW conductivity of about 100 to 1000 S/m at microwave frequencies of about 1 GHz. / Geladene Domänenwände (DW) in reinen Ferroelektrika stellen eine neue Möglichkeit zur Erzeugung zukünftiger, funktionalisierter Elektroniken dar. An geladenen DW ändert sich die Polarisation sehr abrupt - innerhalb nur weniger Atomabstände. Sofern die dadurch hervorgerufene Ladungsträgeranreicherung elektrisch abgeschirmt werden kann, könnte dies zu faszinierenden elektrischen Eigenschaften führen. Wir möchten uns hierbei jedoch auf die elektrische Leitfähigkeit beschränken. Ein großer Vorteil für die Anwendung leitfähiger DW ist deren kontrollierte Bewegung unter Einwirkung elektrischer Felder. Dies ermöglicht die Manipulation das Ladungstransports, welches zum Beispiel im Bereich der Rekonfigurierbarkeit, schneller Speicherbauelemente und jeder Art von adaptiven elektronischen Schaltungen Anwendung finden kann. In dieser Dissertationsschrift möchte ich diesen neuen Typus grenzflächiger elektronischen Ladungstransports an geladenen DW hauptsächlich am Beispiel von Lithiumniobat/-LiNbO3 (LNO) untersuchen. Die Annahme lautete hierbei: umso stärker die DW zur ferroelektrischen Achse geneigt ist, also desto stärker die gebundene Polarisationsladung und folglich die elektrische DW-Leitfähigkeit. Die elektrische DW-Leitfähigkeit und die Korrelation mit der Polarisationsladung wurde mit verschiedenen experimentellen Methoden wie Rasterkraftmikroskopie, linearer und nichtlinearer optischer Mikroskopie als auch Elektronenmikroskopie untersucht. Es konnte eine klare Korrelation durch Vergleich der dreidimensionalen DW-Aufzeichnungsdaten mit der lokalen Leitfähigkeit gezeigt werden. Wir haben weiterhin den Leitfähigkeitsmechanismus an geladenen DW mittels temperaturabhängiger Strom-Spannungskennlinien untersucht und konnten hierbei einen Hopping-Transport kleiner Elektronenpolaronen nachweisen, welche nach Elektroneninjektion in die geladene DW generiert werden. Der thermisch aktivierte Ladungsträgertransport ist in guter Übereinstimmung mit zeitaufgelöster Polaron-Lumineszenzspektroskopie. Die Anwendbarkeit dieses Effektes für nicht-volatile Speicherbauelemente wurde an Metall-Ferroelektrika-Metall Schichtstrukturen mit CMOS-kompatiblen einkristalliner Filmen untersucht. Die Filme zeigen bisher nichtgesehene Durchhalte- und Speichervermögen, genau definierte Schaltspannung sowie sehr geringe Leckageströme wie dies für einkristalline Materialsysteme erwartet wird. Die Leitfähigkeit konnte mittels entsprechender Wahl der elektrischen Schaltzeiten und -spannungen zielgerichtet manipuliert und geschalten werden. Es konnte darüber hinaus gezeigt werden, dass die hergestellten geladenen DW über eine Zeitspanne von mindestens zwei Monaten stabil sind und hierbei leitfähig bleiben. Die Leitfähigkeit der DW wurde weiterhin mittels Mikrowellenimpedanzmikroskopie untersucht. Dabei konnten DW-Leitfähigkeiten von 100 bis 1000 S/m für Mikrowellenfrequenzen von etwa 1GHz ermittelt werden.

Visualization of domain structure evolution under an electrical bias has been carried out in ferroelectric La:HfO2 capacitors by a combination of Piezoresponse Force Microscopy (PFM) and pulse switching techniques to study the nanoscopic mechanism of polarization reversal and the wake-up process. It has been directly shown that the main mechanism behind the transformation of the polarization hysteretic behavior and an increase in the remanent polarization value upon the alternating current cycling is electrically induced domain de-pinning. PFM imaging and local spectroscopy revealed asymmetric switching in the La:HfO2 capacitors due to a significant imprint likely caused by the different boundary conditions at the top and bottom interfaces. Domain switching kinetics can be well-described by the nucleation limited switching model characterized by a broad distribution of the local switching times. It has been found that the domain velocity varies significantly throughout the switching process indicating strong interaction with structural defects.

In dieser Arbeit werden ferroelektrische Phasenübergänge in verspannten (K,Na)NbO3-Schichten erstmals mit Hilfe temperaturabhängiger dreidimensionaler Röntgenbeugung untersucht. Der Fokus liegt auf stark anisotrop verspannten Dünnschichten, die bei Raumtemperatur ein geordnetes Fischgräten-Domänenmuster mit einer periodischen Anordnung von monoklinen a1a2/MC-Phasen aufweisen. Bei Erhöhung der Temperatur durchlaufen die (K,Na)NbO3-Dünnschichten einen ferroelektrischen Phasenübergang in die orthorhombische Hochtemperaturphase, die sich durch regelmäßige, alternierenden a1/a2-Streifendomänen mit ausschließlich lateraler Polarisation auszeichnet. In-plane Röntgenmessungen zeigen, dass die Filmeinheitszellen eine kleine Verzerrung in der Ebene erfahren, was zur Bildung von vier verschiedenen Einheitszellvarianten und damit vier verschiedenen (Super-)Domänenvarianten führt. Durch den Vergleich von Röntgenbeugungsmessungen verschiedener Bragg-Reflexe an Filmen mit unterschiedlicher Schichtdicke ist es möglich, die spezifischen Beugungsmerkmale zu unterscheiden und sie den einzelnen Phasen zuzuordnen. Mit Hilfe von in situ temperaturabhängiger Röntgenbeugung ist es daher möglich, die Details des Phasenübergangs vom Fischgräten in das Streifen-Domänenmuster aufzudecken. Es zeigt sich, dass dieser sich über einen großen Temperaturbereich erstreckt und in mehreren Schritten vollzieht. Die Beobachtung von Phasenkoexistenz innerhalb des Übergangs und einer thermischen Hysterese in der Phasenübergangstemperatur lassen auf einen Phasenübergang erster Art schließen. Zudem hängt die Phasenübergangstemperatur stark von der Kaliumkonzentration x in der KxNa1-xNbO3-Dünnschicht ab und kann durch eine Änderung von x=0,95 (stärker kompressiv verspannt) auf x=0,8 (stärker tensil verspannt) um etwa 60 K erhöht werden. Darüber hinaus ist dies die erste Studie, die experimentell beobachtete dreidimensionale Domänenanordnungen direkt mit Berechnungen aus Phasenfeldsimulationen vergleicht. / In this work, ferroelectric phase transitions in strained (K,Na)NbO3 films are studied for the first time using in situ temperature-dependent three-dimensional X-ray diffraction. The focus lies on strongly anisotropically strained thin films, which exhibit a well-ordered herringbone domain pattern with a periodic arrangement of monoclinic a1a2/MC phases at room temperature. Upon increasing temperatures, the (K,Na)NbO3 thin films undergo a ferroelectric phase transition to the orthorhombic high-temperature phase, which is characterized by a regular pattern of alternating a1/a2 stripe domains with pure lateral polarization. In-plane X-ray measurements show that the film unit cells undergo a small in-plane distortion, leading to the formation of four different unit cell variants and thus four different (super)domain variants. By comparing X-ray diffraction measurements of different Bragg reflections of films with different film thicknesses, it is possible to distinguish the specific diffraction features and assign them to the individual phases observed at the different temperatures. Using in situ temperature-dependent X-ray diffraction, it is therefore possible to reveal the details of the phase transition from the a1a2/MC herringbone to the a1/a2 stripe domain pattern. It is shown to extend over a wide temperature range and to occur in several steps. The observation of phase coexistence within the transition and a thermal hysteresis in the phase transition temperature suggests a first-order type phase transition. Moreover, the phase transition temperature strongly depends on the molar concentration of potassium x in the KxNa1-xNbO3 thin film and can be increased by about 60 K by changing x=0.95 (more compressively strained) to x=0.8 (more tensile strained). Furthermore, this is the first study to directly compare experimentally observed three-dimensional domain arrangements with calculations from phase field simulations.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Preparation and characterization of multiferroic materials in which ferroelectricity and ferromagnetism coexist would be a milestone for functionalized materials and devices. First, electric properties of polyvinylidene (PVDF) films fabricated using the Langmuir-Schaefer method have been studied. Films of different thickness were deposited on silicon substrates and analyzed using several techniques. X-ray diffraction (XRD) data showed that PVDF films crystallize at an annealing temperature above 130 °C. Polarization versus electric field (PE) ferroelectric measurements were done for samples prepared with electrodes. PE measurements show that the coercivity of the films increases as the maximum applied electric field increases. The coercivity dependence on the frequency of the applied electric field can be fitted as . The results also show that the coercivity decreases with increasing the thickness of PVDF film due to the pinning effect. Next, we have demonstrated that those PVDF properties can be controlled by applying an external magnetic field. Samples were created in a layered heterostructure, starting with a Fe thin film, PVDF above that, and followed by another thin film of Fe. Extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy was used to study the interface between PVDF polymer films and ferromagnetic iron thin films. Conventional EXAFS was applied to identify the structure of a Fe film sandwiched between two PVDF layers. An electric signal was then applied to the polymer to study the effects polarizing the polymer has on the Fe atoms at the interface. This shows that the Fe atoms diffuse into the PVDF layer at the interface between the two layers. Polarizing the film causes further diffusion of Fe atoms into the polymer. We also found that as the applied magnetic field is changed, the switching of electric polarization for the PVDF displayed a dependence on the external magnetic field. We also noticed that both the coercivity and polarization for the PVDF polymer display hysteretic features as the applied magnetic field is changed. We also found that the thickness of both the iron layers and the PVDF layer has an effect on the magnetoelectric coupling in our samples. The same strain applied to a thicker PVDF layer becomes tougher to flip the polarization compared to a thinner PVDF layer. As the iron film thickness increases, the strain also increases, and the polarization of the PVDF polymer is more easily flipped. We also found that the magnetoelectric sensitivity increases as both the PVDF and iron layers increase in thickness. We have shown that it is possible to control the ferroelectric properties of a PVDF film by tuning the magnetic field in a heterostructure. Our experiments show a coupling between the electric polarization and applied magnetic field in multiferroic heterostructures much larger than any previously reported values. Previous reports have used inorganic materials for the ferroelectric layer. Organic polymers have an electric dipole originating at the molecular level due to atoms with different electronegativity that are free to rotate. To flip the polarization, the chains must rotate and the position of the atoms must change. This increases the force felt locally by those chains. Using this polymer, we are able to increase the magnetoelectric coupling.

In an era in which the amount of produced and stored data continues to exponentially grow, standard memory concepts start showing size, power consumption and costs limitation which make the search for alternative device concepts essential. Within a context where new technologies such as DRAM, magnetic RAM, resistive RAM, phase change memories and eFlash are explored and optimized, ferroelectric memory devices like FeRAM seem to showcase a whole range of properties which could satisfy market needs, offering the possibility of creating a non-volatile RAM. In fact, hafnia and zirconia-based ferroelectric materials opened up a new scenario in the memory technology scene, overcoming the dimension scaling limitations and the integration difficulties presented by their predecessors perovskite ferroelectrics. In particular, HfₓZr₁₋ₓO₂ stands out because of high processing flexibility and ease of integration in the standard semiconductor industry process flows for CMOS fabrication. Nonetheless, further understanding is necessary in order tocorrelate device performance and reliability to the establishment of ferroelectricity itself. The aim of this work is to investigate how the composition of the ferroelectric oxide, together with the one of the electrode materials influence the behavior of a ferroelectric RAM. With this goal, different process parameters and reliability properties are considered and an analysis of the polarization reversal is performed. Starting from undoped hafnia and zirconia and subsequently examining their intermixed system, it is shown how surface/volume energy contributions, mechanical stress and oxygen-related defects all concur in the formation of the ferroelectric phase. Based on the process optimization of an HfₓZr₁₋ₓO₂-based capacitor performed within these pages, a 64 kbit 1T1C FeRAM array is demonstrated by Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation which shows write voltage and latency as low as 2.0 V and 16 ns, respectively. Outstanding retention and endurance performances are also predicted, which make the addressed device an extremely strong competitor in the semiconductor scene.