Experimental investigation of the electrocaloric response in ferroelectric materials

We have analyzed the electrocaloric response in ferroelectric materials in nonequilibrium thermal conditions. The temperature dependences of the electrocaloric response during polarization and depolarization of ferroelectric samples based on solid solutions of barium–strontium titanate and lead magnoniobate–titanate are considered. The difference in the electrocaloric responses for polarization and depolarization, which can be as large as 5 mK, has been demonstrated experimentally.