Enhancement of Local Piezoresponse in Polymer Ferroelectrics via Nanoscale Control of Microstructure

Authors

Yoon-Young Choi, Argonne National Laboratory
Pankaj Sharma, University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Charudatta Phatak, Argonne National Laboratory
David J. Gosztola, Argonne National Laboratory
Yunya Liu, Xiangtan University
Joonseok Lee, Argonne National Laboratory
Byeongdu Lee, Argonne National Laboratory
Jiangyu Li, University of WashingtonFollow
Alexei Gruverman, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Stephen Ducharme, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Seungbum Hong, Argonne National LaboratoryFollow

Date of this Version

2-3-2015

Citation

CHOI ET AL. VOL. 9, NO. 2, pgs: 1809–1819, 2015.

Comments

Copyright 2015 American Chemical Society. Used by permission.

Abstract

Polymer ferroelectrics are flexible and lightweight electromechanical materials that are widely studied due to their potential application as sensors, actuators, and energy harvesters. However, one of the biggest challenges is their low piezoelectric coefficient. Here, we report a mechanical annealing effect based on local pressure induced by a nanoscale tip that enhances the local piezoresponse. This process can control the nanoscale material properties over a microscale area at room temperature. We attribute this improvement to the formation and growth of β-phase extended chain crystals via sliding diffusion and crystal alignment along the scan axis under high mechanical stress. We believe that this technique can be useful for local enhancement of piezoresponse in ferroelectric polymer thin films.