Observation of nanoscale 180 degrees stripe domains in ferroelectric PbTiO3 thin films

Phys Rev Lett. 2002 Aug 5;89(6):067601. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.89.067601. Epub 2002 Jul 19.

Abstract

We report the observation of periodic 180 degrees stripe domains below the ferroelectric transition in thin films. Epitaxial PbTiO3 films of thickness d=1.6 to 42 nm on SrTiO3 substrates were studied using x-ray scattering. Upon cooling below T(C), satellites appeared around Bragg peaks indicating the presence of 180 degrees stripe domains of period Lambda=3.7 to 24 nm. The dependence of Lambda on d agrees well with theory including epitaxial strain effects, while the suppression of T(C) for thinner films is significantly larger than that expected solely from stripe domains.