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Piezoelectric and pyroelectric effects induced by interface polar symmetry

Author

Listed:
  • Ming-Min Yang

    (University of Warwick
    Center for Emergent Matter Science)

  • Zheng-Dong Luo

    (University of Warwick)

  • Zhou Mi

    (Shijiazhuang Tiedao University)

  • Jinjin Zhao

    (Shijiazhuang Tiedao University
    Shijiazhuang Tiedao University)

  • Sharel Pei E

    (University of Warwick
    Teesside University)

  • Marin Alexe

    (University of Warwick)

Abstract

Interfaces in heterostructures have been a key point of interest in condensed-matter physics for decades owing to a plethora of distinctive phenomena—such as rectification1, the photovoltaic effect2, the quantum Hall effect3 and high-temperature superconductivity4—and their critical roles in present-day technical devices. However, the symmetry modulation at interfaces and the resultant effects have been largely overlooked. Here we show that a built-in electric field that originates from band bending at heterostructure interfaces induces polar symmetry therein that results in emergent functionalities, including piezoelectricity and pyroelectricity, even though the component materials are centrosymmetric. We study classic interfaces—namely, Schottky junctions—formed by noble metal and centrosymmetric semiconductors, including niobium-doped strontium titanium oxide crystals, niobium-doped titanium dioxide crystals, niobium-doped barium strontium titanium oxide ceramics, and silicon. The built-in electric field in the depletion region induces polar structures in the semiconductors and generates substantial piezoelectric and pyroelectric effects. In particular, the pyroelectric coefficient and figure of merit of the interface are over one order of magnitude larger than those of conventional bulk polar materials. Our study enriches the functionalities of heterostructure interfaces, offering a distinctive approach to realizing energy transduction beyond the conventional limitation imposed by intrinsic symmetry.

Suggested Citation

  • Ming-Min Yang & Zheng-Dong Luo & Zhou Mi & Jinjin Zhao & Sharel Pei E & Marin Alexe, 2020. "Piezoelectric and pyroelectric effects induced by interface polar symmetry," Nature, Nature, vol. 584(7821), pages 377-381, August.
  • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:584:y:2020:i:7821:d:10.1038_s41586-020-2602-4
    DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2602-4
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Xiao Guo & Yilin Wang & Chunyu Xu & Zibo Wei & Chenxi Ding, 2024. "Influence of the Schottky Junction on the Propagation Characteristics of Shear Horizontal Waves in a Piezoelectric Semiconductor Semi-Infinite Medium," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-27, February.
    2. Malkeshkumar Patel & Hyeong-Ho Park & Priyanka Bhatnagar & Naveen Kumar & Junsik Lee & Joondong Kim, 2024. "Transparent integrated pyroelectric-photovoltaic structure for photo-thermo hybrid power generation," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-14, December.
    3. Shubham Kumar Parate & Sandeep Vura & Subhajit Pal & Upanya Khandelwal & Rama Satya Sandilya Ventrapragada & Rajeev Kumar Rai & Sri Harsha Molleti & Vishnu Kumar & Girish Patil & Mudit Jain & Ambresh , 2024. "Giant electrostriction-like response from defective non-ferroelectric epitaxial BaTiO3 integrated on Si (100)," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-8, December.
    4. Yuzhong Hu & Kaushik Parida & Hao Zhang & Xin Wang & Yongxin Li & Xinran Zhou & Samuel Alexander Morris & Weng Heng Liew & Haomin Wang & Tao Li & Feng Jiang & Mingmin Yang & Marin Alexe & Zehui Du & C, 2022. "Bond engineering of molecular ferroelectrics renders soft and high-performance piezoelectric energy harvesting materials," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-10, December.
    5. Qiuhong Yu & Rui Ge & Juan Wen & Qi Xu & Zhouguang Lu & Shuhai Liu & Yong Qin, 2024. "Electric pulse-tuned piezotronic effect for interface engineering," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-11, December.
    6. Poudel, Sachin & Thapa, Rubi & Basnet, Rabin & Timofiejczuk, Anna & Kunwar, Anil, 2024. "PiezoTensorNet: Crystallography informed multi-scale hierarchical machine learning model for rapid piezoelectric performance finetuning," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 361(C).

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