Domain Wall Engineering for Novel Nanoelectronics

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Non-technical Description: This project provides a scientific basis for the development of novel electronic devices for information technology. The project utilizes a variety of microscopy techniques to investigate the relation between the atomic structure and electrical characteristics of the structural boundaries that separate regions with different orientations of electrical polarization (domains). The main goal of this study is to realize new type of materials with electrical properties determined by the domain boundaries, rather than the domains themselves, and potential applications in new types of computer memory devices. The project puts a strong emphasis on materials science, nanostructure fabrication and microscopy characterization. This project offers new training opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students, along with various outreach activities targeting K-12 students, teachers, minorities and underrepresented groups.Technical Description: Domain boundaries in ferroic materials, with various order parameters at play, offer a possibility of conceptually novel devices utilizing state variables different from those of the bulk materials. The growing role of domain walls in progressively shrinking devices necessitates the development of new approaches for active control of domain wall behavior and thorough investigation of their properties. This project focuses on investigation of the interplay between the functional and structural properties of the domain walls at a fundamental level and their subsequent use in novel electronic devices through the right combination of fabrication, high-resolution structural characterization and electrical testing methods. This project involves: (1) fabrication of free-standing single-crystalline ferroelectric mesoscale lamellae and cross-sectional samples of thin films, (2) controlled manipulation of the domain walls and testing of their transport properties by means of scanning probe microscopy (SPM) techniques, and (3) high-resolution electron microscopy structural characterization of domain walls. This research contributes to the technological development of novel nanoelectronic devices based on the domain walls and provides education and research training possibilities for graduate students and young researchers in advanced areas of nanotechnology in culturally diverse environment.