Activation of frozen ferroelectric domain wall by magnetic field sweeping in multiferroic CuFeO2

H. Tamatsukuri, S. Mitsuda, T. Nakajima, K. Shibata, C. Kaneko, K. Takehana, Y. Imanaka, N. Terada, H. Kitazawa, K. Prokes, S. Matas, K. Kiefer, S. Paeckel, A. Sokolowski, B. Klemke, and S. Gerischer
Phys. Rev. B 93, 174101 – Published 3 May 2016
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Abstract

In a ferroelectric helimagnetic phase of a spin-driven multiferroic, CuFeO2, we find irreversibly additive evolution of electric polarization P induced by sweeping magnetic field H under an applied electric field E, despite a large coercive electric field in the phase. From the unpolarized neutron diffraction experiments with in situ P measurements under applied E, we reveal that increment of P is achieved by the variation of an incommensurate magnetic modulation wave number q of the helical magnetic ordering in H sweeping regardless of increasing or decreasing H. Combining this result with the H dependence of the magnetic diffraction intensity and a result of off-bench P measurements, we conclude that the H evolution of P is caused by a change in a (ferroelectric) helicity domain volume fraction by driving the helicity domain wall (DW). Taking into account the results of further detailed P measurements, we provide a speculation for microscopic helicity DW motion. The present study demonstrates the magnetoelectric cross correlation in driving a multiferroic DW: we can activate the frozen ferroelectric DW by means of H sweeping. This is also an achievement of driving an antiferromagnetic DW, which is difficult in conventional antiferromagnets in principle.

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  • Received 13 October 2015
  • Revised 16 March 2016

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.93.174101

©2016 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Condensed Matter, Materials & Applied Physics

Authors & Affiliations

H. Tamatsukuri*, S. Mitsuda, T. Nakajima, K. Shibata, and C. Kaneko

  • Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Tokyo University of Science, Tokyo 162-8601, Japan

K. Takehana and Y. Imanaka

  • National Institute for Materials Science, Nano Physics Group, 3-13 Sakura, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0003, Japan

N. Terada and H. Kitazawa

  • National Institute for Materials Science, Neutron Scattering Group, 1-2-1 Sengen, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0047, Japan

K. Prokes, S. Matas, K. Kiefer, S. Paeckel, A. Sokolowski, B. Klemke, and S. Gerischer

  • Helmholtz-Centre Berlin for Materials and Energy, Glienicker Straße 100, Berlin 14109, Germany

  • *tamatsukuri@nsmsmac4.ph.kagu.tus.ac.jp

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Issue

Vol. 93, Iss. 17 — 1 May 2016

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