Integrated Calendar

Ferroelectrics are functional materials with strongly interacting electrons and ions, and with applications ranging from medical imaging systems to electro-mechanical sensors, non-volatile memory devices and cellular antennae [1, 2]. Being a collective phenomenon, the origin of ferroelectricity is hidden at the nanoscale, where the border between one and a few domains is. In addition, the nanometer scale behaviour of ferroelectrics encompasses also a great technological potential because at this scale, "the material is the machine" [3]. We developed a novel method for imaging domain statics and dynamics with an improvement in resolution of one order of magnitude with respect to conventional methods (~1 nm) [4]. This enabled the discovery and understanding of exciting phenomena that act together as a smart multiscale behaviour of ferroelectricity, in which the electro-mechanical properties are strongly coupled. The existence of such natural multiscale mechanism lays the ground for accomplishing Feynman’s nanotechnology vision.
In the talk, some of these phenomena will be surveyed. These include some fascinating domain structures at different length scales [5-9]. Moreover, it will be presented how it is possible to control the crystallographic characteristics of ionic crystal ferroelectrics by the mean of electric field at the nanometer regime [10]. Lastly, it will be demonstrated how these phenomena qualify ferroelectrics for the next generation high-density non-volatile memory devices and for novel wireless telecommunication technologies.