Properties of ferroelectric nanodots embedded in a polarizable medium: Atomistic simulations

TL;DR

This study uses atomistic simulations to explore finite-temperature phases of ferroelectric nanodots in a polarizable medium, revealing novel states and the influence of depolarizing fields and inter-dot interactions.

Contribution

It introduces an atomistic simulation approach to identify new phases and complex orderings in ferroelectric nanodots embedded in polarizable media.

Findings

Discovery of coexistence phases with multiple order parameters

Identification of unique dipole vortex arrangements

Analysis of depolarizing field effects on phase stability

Abstract

An atomistic approach is used to investigate finite-temperature properties of ferroelectric nanodots that are embedded in a polarizable medium. Different phases are predicted, depending on the ferroelectric strengths of the material constituting the dot and of the system forming the medium. In particular, novel states, exhibiting a coexistence between two kinds of order parameters or possessing a peculiar order between dipole vortices of adjacent dots, are discovered. We also discuss the origins of these phases, e.g. depolarizing fields and medium-driven interactions between dots.