Loading Rate Effect on the Domain Switching of Ferroelectric Materials

A method to characterize the strain electric field butterfly behavior based on the underlying domain switching mechanism is presented at first. The effect of loading rate on the different characteristics of the strain electric-field-butterfly behavior is then studied. By comparing the changes in these characteristics under different loading rates, it is established that the loading rate dependence of the strain electric field butterfly behavior is mainly due to two factors, 1) the dependence of the switching of individual domains on the magnitude and duration of the loading time and 2) the variation of the transition electric field with the loading rate. Several interesting attributes of the domain switching behavior that may shed light on understanding the underlying mechanism of domain switching further is illustrated in the present study. The present study also demonstrates that the method of characterizing the strain electric butterfly based on the underlying domain switching mechanism is very effective in studying ferroelectric behavior under different loading conditions.