Atomically engineered interfaces yield extraordinary electrostriction.

Electrostriction is a property of dielectric materials whereby an applied electric field induces a mechanical deformation proportional to the square of that field. The magnitude of the effect is usually minuscule (<10-19 m2 V-2 for simple oxides). However, symmetry-breaking phenomena at the interfaces can offer an efficient strategy for the design of new properties1,2. Here we report an engineered electrostrictive effect via the epitaxial deposition of alternating layers of Gd2O3-doped CeO2 and Er2O3-stabilized δ-Bi2O3 with atomically controlled interfaces on NdGaO3 substrates. The value of the electrostriction coefficient achieved is 2.38 × 10-14 m2 V-2, exceeding the best known relaxor ferroelectrics by three orders of magnitude. Our theoretical calculations indicate that this greatly enhanced electrostriction arises from coherent strain imparted by interfacial lattice discontinuity. These artificial heterostructures open a new avenue for the design and manipulation of electrostrictive materials and devices for nano/micro actuation and cutting-edge sensors.

Electromagnetic Functionalization of Wide-Bandgap Dielectric Oxides by Boron Interstitial Doping.

A surge in interest of oxide-based materials is testimony for their potential utility in a wide array of device applications and offers a fascinating landscape for tuning the functional properties through a variety of physical and chemical parameters. In particular, selective electronic/defect doping has been demonstrated to be vital in tailoring novel functionalities, not existing in the bulk host oxides. Here, an extraordinary interstitial doping effect is demonstrated centered around a light element, boron (B). The host matrix is a novel composite system, made from discrete bulk LaAlO3 :LaBO3 compounds. The findings show a spontaneous ordering of the interstitial B cations within the host LaAlO3 lattices, and subsequent spin-polarized charge injection into the neighboring cations. This leads to a series of remarkable cation-dominated electrical switching and high-temperature ferromagnetism. Hence, the induced interstitial doping serves to transform a nonmagnetic insulating bulk oxide into a ferromagnetic ionic-electronic conductor. This unique interstitial B doping effect upon its control is proposed to be as a general route for extracting/modifying multifunctional properties in bulk oxides utilized in energy and spin-based applications.

Intrinsic conduction through topological surface states of insulating Bi2Te3 epitaxial thin films.

Topological insulators represent a novel state of matter with surface charge carriers having a massless Dirac dispersion and locked helical spin polarization. Many exciting experiments have been proposed by theory, yet their execution has been hampered by the extrinsic conductivity associated with the unavoidable presence of defects in Bi2Te3 and Bi2Se3 bulk single crystals, as well as impurities on their surfaces. Here we present the preparation of Bi2Te3 thin films that are insulating in the bulk and the four-point probe measurement of the conductivity of the Dirac states on surfaces that are intrinsically clean. The total amount of charge carriers in the experiment is of the order of 10(12) cm(-2) only, and mobilities up to 4,600 cm(2)/Vs have been observed. These values are achieved by carrying out the preparation, structural characterization, angle-resolved and X-ray photoemission analysis, and temperature-dependent four-point probe conductivity measurement all in situ under ultra-high-vacuum conditions. This experimental approach opens the way to prepare devices that can exploit the intrinsic topological properties of the Dirac surface states.