Minghui Qin

Magnetoelectric Coupling in Well-Ordered Epitaxial BiFeO3/CoFe2O4/SrRuO3 Heterostructured Nanodot Array

Multiferroic magnetoelectric (ME) composites exhibit sizable ME coupling at room temperature, promising applications in a wide range of novel devices. For high density integrated devices, it is indispensable to achieve a well-ordered nanostructured array with reasonable ME coupling. For this purpose, we explored the well-ordered array of isolated epitaxial BiFeO3/CoFe2O4/SrRuO3 heterostructured nanodots fabricated by nanoporous anodic alumina (AAO) template method. The arrayed heterostructured nanodots demonstrate well-established epitaxial structures and coexistence of piezoelectric and ferromagnetic properties, as revealed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and peizoeresponse/magnetic force microscopy (PFM/MFM). It was found that the heterostructured nanodots yield apparent ME coupling, likely due to the effective transfer of interface couplings along with the substantial release of substrate clamping. A noticeable change in piezoelectric response of the nanodots can be triggered by magnetic field, indicating a substantial enhancement of ME coupling. Moreover, an electric field induced magnetization switching in these nanodots can be observed, showing a large reverse ME effect. These results offer good opportunities of the nanodots for applications in high-density ME devices, e.g., high density recording (>100 Gbit/in.(2)) or logic devices.

Current rectifying and resistive switching in high density BiFeO3 nanocapacitor arrays on Nb-SrTiO3 substrates.

Ultrahigh density well-registered oxide nanocapacitors are very essential for large scale integrated microelectronic devices. We report the fabrication of well-ordered multiferroic BiFeO3 nanocapacitor arrays by a combination of pulsed laser deposition (PLD) method and anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) template method. The capacitor cells consist of BiFeO3/SrRuO3 (BFO/SRO) heterostructural nanodots on conductive Nb-doped SrTiO3 (Nb-STO) substrates with a lateral size of ~60 nm. These capacitors also show reversible polarization domain structures, and well-established piezoresponse hysteresis loops. Moreover, apparent current-rectification and resistive switching behaviors were identified in these nanocapacitor cells using conductive-AFM technique, which are attributed to the polarization modulated p-n junctions. These make it possible to utilize these nanocapacitors in high-density (>100 Gbit/inch2) nonvolatile memories and other oxide nanoelectronic devices.

Significant enhancements of dielectric and magnetic properties in Bi(Fe1−xMgx)O3−x/2 induced by oxygen vacancies

Bi(Fe1?xMgx)O3?x/2 (x?=?0?10%) ceramics were synthesized by high-energy ball milling and solid-state reaction. It was found that a small amount of Mg doping leads to a dramatic enhancement in dielectric permittivity (?two orders of magnitude), along with an apparent improvement in ferromagnetism. The observed significant enhanced dielectric properties may be interpreted by the Maxwell?Wagner relaxation in association with internal barrier layer capacitance. The ferromagnetism can be ascribed to the creation of unbalanced Fe3+ spins and relative long-range coupling mediated by the oxygen vacancies trapped localized electrons.

Energy storage and polarization switching kinetics of (001)-oriented Pb0.97La0.02(Zr0.95Ti0.05)O3 antiferroelectric thick films

For antiferroelectric (AFE) energy storage, the stability of energy storage density and conversion efficiency against wide temperature (T) range and broad frequency (f) band is highly preferred. In this work, we investigate the energy storage and associated kinetics of polarization switching in (001)-textured AFE Pb0.97La0.02(Zr0.95Ti0.05)O3 (PLZT 2/95/5) thick films prepared by sol-gel method. A recoverable energy storage density (Wre) of ∼26.8u2009J/cm3 and an energy conversion efficiency (η) as high as ∼62.5% have been obtained under an electric field of 1.85u2009MV/cm and room temperature. Both the Wre and η are only weakly T-dependent up to 280u2009°C and weakly f-dependent ranging from 20u2009Hz to 10u2009kHz. The high frequency stability originates from the rapid polarization switching as identified by the nucleation-limited-switching theory, suggesting a characteristic switching time as short as ∼3u2009ns, favorable for applications in pulse energy storage.

Multi-step magnetization of the Ising model on a Shastry–Sutherland lattice: a Monte Carlo simulation

The magnetization behaviors and spin configurations of the classical Ising model on a Shastry-Sutherland lattice are investigated using Monte Carlo simulations, in order to understand the fascinating magnetization plateaus observed in TmB(4) and other rare-earth tetraborides. The simulations reproduce the 1/2 magnetization plateau by taking into account the dipole-dipole interaction. In addition, a narrow 2/3 magnetization step at low temperature is predicted in our simulation. The multi-step magnetization can be understood as the consequence of the competitions among the spin-exchange interaction, the dipole-dipole interaction, and the static magnetic energy.

SrTiO3 modified TiO2 electrodes and improved dye-sensitized TiO2 solar cells

The SrTiO(3)-coated TiO(2) (TiO(2)/SrTiO(3)) electrodes prepared by radio frequency magnetron sputtering are used to improve the performance of dye-sensitized TiO(2) solar cells by means of surface modification. The structural and performance characterizations reveal that the TiO(2)/SrTiO(3) electrodes, in comparison with fresh TiO(2) electrodes, have low density of oxygen vacancies, passivated surface states, and suppressed interfacial recombination effect, thus resulting in improved performance parameters of the cells. An optimized coating of SrTiO(3) layer on the TiO(2) film surface allows an enhancement of the power conversion efficiency from 4.78% to 5.91%

High-density array of ferroelectric nanodots with robust and reversibly switchable topological domain states

Robust and reversible polar topological center domains were found in BiFeO3 nanodots, which are individually controllable. The exotic topological domains in ferroelectrics and multiferroics have attracted extensive interest in recent years due to their novel functionalities and potential applications in nanoelectronic devices. One of the key challenges for these applications is a realization of robust yet reversibly switchable nanoscale topological domain states with high density, wherein spontaneous topological structures can be individually addressed and controlled. This has been accomplished in our work using high-density arrays of epitaxial BiFeO3 (BFO) ferroelectric nanodots with a lateral size as small as ~60 nm. We demonstrate various types of spontaneous topological domain structures, including center-convergent domains, center-divergent domains, and double-center domains, which are stable over sufficiently long time but can be manipulated and reversibly switched by electric field. The formation mechanisms of these topological domain states, assisted by the accumulation of compensating charges on the surface, have also been revealed. These results demonstrated that these reversibly switchable topological domain arrays are promising for applications in high-density nanoferroelectric devices such as nonvolatile memories.

The competing spin orders and fractional magnetization plateaus of the classical Heisenberg model on Shastry-Sutherland lattice: Consequence of long-range interactions

The competing spin orders and fractional magnetization plateaus of the classical Heisenberg model with long-range interactions on a Shastry-Sutherland lattice are investigated using Monte Carlo simulations, in order to understand the fascinating spin ordering sequence observed in TmB4 and other rare-earth tetraborides. The simulation reproduces the experimental 1/2 magnetization plateau at low temperature by considering multifold long range interactions. It is found that more local long range interactions can be satisfied in the 1/2 plateau state than those in the 1/3 plateau state, leading to the stabilization of the extended 1/2 plateau. The phase boundaries in the magnetic field at zero temperature are determined, demonstrating the simulation results. When the energies of the Neel state and the collinear state are degenerated, the former state is more likely to be stabilized due to the competitions among the local collinear spin orders. The present work provides a comprehensive proof of the phase trans...

Room temperature multiferroic and magnetodielectric properties in Sm and Sc co-doped BiFeO3 ceramics

In this work, Sm and Sc co-doped Bi1−x Sm x Fe1−y Sc y O3 (x = 0.00–0.20; y = 0.03) ceramics are fabricated by a rapid liquid phase sintering method, in order to develop single-phase multiferroics with large magnetization and polarization. X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopic studies reveal that the ceramics are single-phase with a structural transition from rhombohedral to orthorhombic structures near x = 0.15. Electric and magnetic measurement results indicate that the transition significantly enhances the multiferroic properties, which stems from the Sm/Sc doping induced collapse of space-modulated spin structure and internal structural distortion. At an optimized composition of Bi0.85Sm0.15Fe0.97Sc0.03O3 (x = 0.15), a remanent polarization of 16.5 μC cm−2, a magnetization 0.2020 emu g−1, and a magnetodielectric effect of 0.46% can be obtained. These results clearly demonstrate a potential application for Sm/Sc doped BiFeO3 ceramics in the field of multiferroic devices.

Bubble polarization domain patterns in periodically ordered epitaxial ferroelectric nanodot arrays

In this work, bubble polarization domains in periodically ordered ferroelectric Pb(Zr0.4Ti0.6)O3 nanodot arrays and their formation mechanisms have been investigated by piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM) and Monte-Carlo simulations. The PFM observations reveal the coexistence of single domain and apparent bubble domain patterns within the same nanodot array, which also exhibit dissimilar polarization reversal processes. The formation of various polarization configurations can be accounted for by the interplay of various factors, such as polarization anisotropy and depolarization field. Using Monte-Carlo simulation, we are able to reproduce bubble and single domains and further predict that these patterns can be tailored by varying the nanodot parameters, including dot height, aspect ratio, etc.In this work, bubble polarization domains in periodically ordered ferroelectric Pb(Zr0.4Ti0.6)O3 nanodot arrays and their formation mechanisms have been investigated by piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM) and Monte-Carlo simulations. The PFM observations reveal the coexistence of single domain and apparent bubble domain patterns within the same nanodot array, which also exhibit dissimilar polarization reversal processes. The formation of various polarization configurations can be accounted for by the interplay of various factors, such as polarization anisotropy and depolarization field. Using Monte-Carlo simulation, we are able to reproduce bubble and single domains and further predict that these patterns can be tailored by varying the nanodot parameters, including dot height, aspect ratio, etc.