Directionally tunable and mechanically deformable ferroelectric crystals from rotating polar globular ionic molecules

Directionally tunable and mechanically deformable ferroelectric crystals from rotating polar globular ionic molecules

Ferroelectrics have found a wide range of applications including memory elements, capacitors, and sensors. Molecular f erroelectric crystals have recently attracted growing interest as viable alternatives for conventional ceramic ferroelectrics, especially due to their non toxicity and solution processability. Herein, we show that a class of molecular compounds known as plastic crystals can exhibit ferroelectricity, provided that the constituent molecules are judiciously chosen from polar ionic molecules. The intrinsic features of plastic crystals, e.g. the rotational mot ion of molecules and phase transitions with lattice symmetry changes, provide the crystals with unique ferroelectric properties relative to conventional molecular crystals , i.e. the possibility to flexibly alter the direction of the polarization axis of a grown crystal by applying an electric field. Owing to t he tunability of the crystal orientation together with mechanical deformability, this novel type of molecular crystals represents an attractive functional material, which will undoubtedly find diverse applications.

Creators Harada Jun

Creators Shimojo Takafumi

Creators Oyamaguchi Hideaki

Creators Hasegawa Hiroyuki

Creators Takahashi Yukihiro

Creators Satomi Koichiro

Creators Suzuki Yasutaka

Creators Kawamata Jun

Creators Inabe Tamotsu

Copyright © 2016, Nature Publishing Group()

[isVersionOf] https://doi.org/10.1038/NCHEM.2567

Award Development of ferroelectric crystals by dynamically controlling the molecular environment in charge transfer complex crystals 26620054