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Large field-induced strains in a lead-free piezoelectric material

Nature Nanotechnology volume 6, pages 98–102 (2011)Cite this article

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Abstract

Piezoelectric materials exhibit a mechanical response to electrical inputs, as well as an electrical response to mechanical inputs, which makes them useful in sensors and actuators1. Lead-based piezoelectrics demonstrate a large mechanical response, but they also pose a health risk2. The ferroelectric BiFeO3 is an attractive alternative because it is lead-free, and because strain can stabilize BiFeO3 phases with a structure that resembles a morphotropic phase boundary3. Here we report a reversible electric-field-induced strain of over 5% in BiFeO3 films, together with a characterization of the origins of this effect. In situ transmission electron microscopy coupled with nanoscale electrical and mechanical probing shows that large strains result from moving the boundaries between tetragonal- and rhombohedral-like phases, which changes the phase stability of the mixture. These results demonstrate the potential of BiFeO3 as a substitute for lead-based materials in future piezoelectric applications.

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Figure 1: Piezoelectric response in BFO capacitors.
Figure 2: Nanoscale localized switching.
Figure 3: Nanoscale reversible large electric-field-induced strain.
Figure 4: In situ mechanical TEM.
Figure 5: In situ electrical TEM.

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Acknowledgements

The work at Berkeley was supported by the Director, Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, Materials Sciences Division of the US Department of Energy (contract DE-AC02-05CH11231). The authors acknowledge support from the National Center for Electron Microscopy, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, which is supported by the US Department of Energy (contract DE-AC02-05CH11231). The work at National Chiao Tung University was supported by the National Science Council (contract 099-2811-M-009-003). J.S. acknowledges support from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.

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  1. J. X. Zhang and B. Xiang: These authors contributed equally to this work

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics, University of California, Berkeley, 94720, California, USA

    J. X. Zhang, Q. He, J. Seidel, P. Yu, S. Y. Yang & R. Ramesh

  2. National Center for Electron Microscopy, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, 94720, California, USA

    B. Xiang & A. M. Minor

  3. Materials Science Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, 94720, California, USA

    J. Seidel & R. Ramesh

  4. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, 94720, California, USA

    R. J. Zeches, A. M. Minor & R. Ramesh

  5. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Chiao Tung University, HsinChu, 30010, Taiwan

    C. H. Wang & Y-H. Chu

  6. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, 61801, Illinois, USA

    L. W. Martin

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Contributions

J.X.Z., R.R., B.X., and A.M.M. conceived and designed the experiments. J.X.Z. and B.X. performed the experiments. J.X.Z., B.X., Q.H., J.S., P.Y., Y.H.C., L.W.M. and A.M.M. analysed the data and helped revise the manuscript. R.J.Z., P.Y., S.Y.Y. and C.H.W. contributed materials. J.X.Z., J.S. and R.R. co-wrote the paper.

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Correspondence to J. X. Zhang.

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Zhang, J., Xiang, B., He, Q. et al. Large field-induced strains in a lead-free piezoelectric material. Nature Nanotech 6, 98–102 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2010.265

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