In situ strain evolution in ferroelectric domains in PZT thin films during actuation

This proposal aims at studying the strain evolution in ferroelectric domains in the vicinity of domain walls in ferroelectric Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 (PZT) thin films by scanning X-ray diffraction microscopy (SXDM) during the application of an electric field. SXDM provides access to the strain with a resolution of 10-5 and lattice tilt with millidegree accuracy while the spatial resolution is defined by the beam size. By measuring three independent Bragg reflections the complete strain tensor in the FE domains will be accessible. The consecutive measurement at different applied electric fields allows for imaging the strain evolution and domain switching close to the coercive field.