TEM Observation on Ferroelectric Domain Structures of PbTiO3 Epitaxial Films

The ferroelectric domain structure of PbTiO3(PTO) films was investigated by using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). In the film with PTO/SrTiO3(STO) structure, 180º domains are formed near the SrTiO3(STO) substrate and the domain length of 180º domains is 100 nm. However, 180º domains are not formed in the film with Pt/PTO/SrRuO3(SRO)/STO structure. These results show that 180º domains are formed in order to minimize depolarizing field energy, and that the domain length of 180º domains is determined by the competition among the depolarizing field energy, domain wall energy, Coulomb interaction and elastic interaction.