Ferroelectric effects in individual BaTiU3 nanocrystals investigated by electron holography.

BaTiO3 (BTO) nanocubes of about 50 nm in size were investigated by means of off-axis electron holography combined with in situ heating above and below the Curie temperature. It is shown that reconstructed electron phase maps of the BTO nanocubes are associated with the ferroelectric polarization pattern through a mechanism that could either be direct imaging of the internal potential or lattice variations that are common in ferroelectric domain patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]