Chang-Beom Eom1
University of Wisconsin--Madison1
Chang-Beom Eom1
University of Wisconsin--Madison1
Strain-mediated magnetoelectric (ME) coupling in ferroelectric (FE) / ferromagnetic (FM) heterostructures offers a unique opportunity for both fundamental scientific research and low power multifunctional devices. Relaxor-ferroelectrics, like (1-x)Pb(Mg<sub>1/3</sub>Nb<sub>2/3</sub>)O<sub>3</sub>-(x)PbTiO<sub>3</sub> (PMN-xPT), are ideal FE layer candidates due to their giant piezoelectricity. But thin films of PMN-PT suffer from substrate clamping which substantially reduces piezoelectric in-plane strains. Here we present the first demonstration of low voltage ME coupling in an all-thin-film heterostructure which utilizes the anisotropic strains induced by the (011) orientation of PMN-PT[1]. We completely remove PMN-PT films from their substrate and couple with FM Ni overlayers to create membrane PMN-PT/Ni heterostructures showing 90 degree Ni magnetization rotation with 3V PMN-PT bias, much less than the bulk PMN-PT ~100V requirement. Scanning transmission electron microscopy and phase-field simulations clarify the membrane response. These results provide a crucial step towards understanding the microstructural behavior of PMN-PT thin films for use in piezo-driven magnetoelectric heterostructures.<br/><br/>[1] S. Lindemann et al., <i>Science Advances</i>, in press (2021)<br/><br/>This work has been done in collaboration with S. Lindemann, J. Irwin, G.-Y. Kim, B. Wang, K. Eom, J. J. Wang, J. M. Hu, L. Q. Chen, S. Y. Choi, C. B. Eom, M. S. Rzchowski<br/><br/>This work was supported by the Army Research Office through Grant W911NF-17-1-0462 and Vannevar Bush Faculty Fellowship (N00014-20-1-2844) and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation’s EPiQS Initiative, grant GBMF9065 to C.B.E, and the US Department of Energy (DOE), Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences (BES), under award number DE-FG02-06ER46327.