Precision synthesis approach discovered that epitaxial strain can deliberately position transition metals at a certain crystallographic position in a composite ferroelectric. The autonomous control of atomic building blocks by strain is applicable for various classes of materials to co-design multifunctional materials with novel or complementary physical properties.
Co-deposition of Bi4Ti3O12 with BiFeO3 by pulsed laser deposition was performed on various substrates to induced both tensile and compressive strain states. Energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy mapping combined with scanning transmission electron microscopy confirmed that the substitutional positioning of Fe can be controlled by the type of strain, enabling the creation of completely artificial improper ferroelectrics.
DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abd7394
