Local probing of relaxation time distributions in ferroelectric polymer nanomesas: Time-resolved piezoresponse force spectroscopy and spectroscopic imaging

Authors

Brian J. Rodriguez, Materials Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge,Tennessee 37831, USA
Stephen Jesse, Oak Ridge National LaboratoryFollow
Jihee Kim, University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Stephen Ducharme, University of NebraskaFollow
Sergei V. Kalinin, Oak Ridge National LaboratoryFollow

Date of this Version

6-1-2008

Comments

Published in APPLIED PHYSICS LETTERS 92, 232903 2008. Copyright © 2008 American Institute of Physics. Used by permission.

Abstract

Time-resolved piezoresponse force spectroscopy (TR-PFS) and spectroscopic imaging are developed to probe the spatial variability of relaxation behavior in nanoscale ferroelectric materials and structures. TR-PFS was applied to study polarization dynamics in polyvinylidine fluoride and trifluoroethylene nanomesas. We demonstrate that polarization relaxation in ferroelectric polymers is slow even on the ~10 nm length scale of piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM) signal generation. Furthermore, the relaxation times are found to be nonuniform within the nanomesa, indicative of a complex internal structure. The applicability of TR-PFM for studies of polarization dynamics in ferroelectric polymers and relaxors is discussed.